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STORIES FROM 
THE HEBREW 



BY 



JOSEPHINE WOODBURY HEERMANS 

PRINCIPAL OF WHITTIER SCHOOL 
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI 



ILLUSTRATED 




SILVER, BURDETT AND COMPANY 

NEW YORK BOSTON CHICAGO 






the library of 
congress, 


Two Copies Received 


JUN 16 '903 


Copyright Entry 


ClJksS OU XXc. No. 


COPY B, 



Copyright, 1903, by 
SILVER, BURDETT AND COMPANY 



INTRODUCTION 



THE introduction of Supplementary Reading into 
the course of study in the common schools is of very 
recent date. Until within the last two decades the chief 
sources from which material was selected for school 
readers were extracts from the Bible, the ancient clas- 
sics of Greece and Rome, the more modern English and 
American authors, and occasional pieces from some of 
the more noted German and French writers. These 
selections usually represented the very highest and 
noblest thoughts in literature, and were fitted to ele- 
vate and to purify the soul, or to inculcate some great 
moral virtue. A decided reaction followed, and there 
has been a complete letting-down in the literary make- 
up of school readers. This change was felt to be 
unsatisfactory, and many teachers turned to the beauti- 
ful stories and myths in classic lore. Charming as this 
great storehouse of literary wealth is, to the thought- 
ful mind, it carries with it a sense of relentless fate. 
Strangely enough, through this stress period, Biblical 
literature has been too much neglected. Our children, 
with all their miscellaneous reading, are getting farther 
and farther away from those touching stories which so 
many of a generation or two ago learned around a 
mother's knee. 



6 INTRODUCTION 

There is a deep-seated belief in the minds of 
thoughtful men and women that many of the best 
stories for children are contained in the Old Testa- 
ment. Of all books, the Bible is the only one that 
commands and subdues the spirit. When children 
imbibe this spirit it gives them higher and loftier con- 
ceptions of life and its duties. For the purpose of 
interesting boys and girls in this kind of literature, 
the author of this book has drawn, with rare tact, 
from Biblical characters, a series of sketches that will 
receive the hearty approval of many earnest workers 
in the cause of elementary education in our country. 

J. M. Greenwood. 

Superintendent of City Schools, 
Kansas City, Missouri. 




PREFACE 

The preparation of this book for use in the pub- 
lic schools has been the outgrowth of experience in 
supplementary reading and language-teaching in the 
grades. 

The Hebrew lore offers a rich and interesting field 
for supplementary reading. Its simplicity renders it 
desirable in very low grades as well as in grades more 
advanced. 

No attempt has been made to explain the meaning 
of any incident or to attach a moral to any story, 
but rather this has been carefully avoided as a great 
error. 

The stories appeal to all readers, because they have 
entered into the life of man. From the great wealth 
of incident it is difficult to choose, — the only reason for 
omitting the stories of the earlier patriarchs and the 
later prophets being that perhaps they are more familiar 
than the ones here presented. 

As much as possible the Biblical Hebrew has been 
retained. The co-ordination of clauses by means of 
and is peculiarly Hebraic. Several splendid examples 
of Hebrew composition are added for the sake of their 
own intrinsic merits. 



8 PREFACE 

It is hoped that* the poems following the stories will 
serve to direct attention to the living influence these 
incidents in early Hebrew history have had on the 
thought and work of poets of succeeding ages. 

J. W. H. 



CONTENTS 



I. 

II. 

III. 



IV. 

v. 

VI. 

VII. 

VIII. 

IX. 

X. 

XL 
XII. 

XIII. 



XIV. 

XV. 

XVI. 



Red Sea — 



— Thomas 



Alexander 



The Finding of Moses 

The Burning Bush 

The Pillar of the Cloud . 

The Song of Moses at the 
Bible .... 

" Sound the Loud Timbrel 
Moore 
The Rain of Manna . 

The Burial of Moses — C. F. 
Joshua .... 
Ruth 

Ruth— -John Godfrey Saxe 
Deborah 

Gideon . . . 
Jephthah .... 

Jephthah's Daughter — N. P. 
Samson . 

Samson — -John Milton 
Samuel 
Saul 

Saul — Robert Browning . . 
"The Sweet Singer of Israel" 

"The Harp the Monarch Minstrel 
Swept " — Lord Byron 
Goliath of Gath 
David and Jonathan . 
Rizpah .... 

Rizpah — W. C. Bryant . 



Willis 



PAGE 

19 
21 

23 

26 
27 
32 
37 
4i 
43 
44 
47 
5o 
54 
57 
60 

63 
66 
70 

72 

74 
75 
82 
86 
88 



IO CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Absalom 92 

Absalom— N. P. Willis . . . .97 

Solomon 98 

The Queen of Sheba . . . .104 

Solomon and the Bees— John G. Saxe . 108 

Elijah in 

Mesha, the King of Moab . . . 115 

Naaman . . . . . . .118 

Sennacherib 120 

The Destruction of Sennacherib — Lord 
Byron . . . . . .123 

Nebuchadnezzar 125 

Recessional — Rudyard Kipling ." . 128 
Belshazzar . . . . . .130 

The Vision of Belshazzar. — Lord Byron 134 

Job 137 

Daniel 143 

The Captives at Babylon . . . .147 
" By the Rivers of Babylon we Sat 
Down and Wept " — Lord Byro?i . 149 

zorobabel 150 

Esther 155 

Esther — Racine . . . . .160 
God the Defense of His People — Bible 162 
God's Goodness to Such as Fear Him 

—Bible 165 

God's Protecting Care — Bible . .169 
The Goodness of God — Bible . -171 
Approach of a Devastating Army — 
Bible . . . . . . -174 

List of Proper Names . . „ . . .177 



XVII. 

XVIII. 
XIX. 

XX. 

XXI. 

XXII. 

XXIII. 



XXIV. 

XXV. 

XXVI. 

XXVII. 

XXVIII. 



XXIX, 
XXX. 



FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS 



David 



the 



Moses in the Bulrushes 
Moses Striking the Rock . 
Joshua Commanding the Sun and 

Still . 
Ruth and Naomi 
Jephthah's Daughter Coming to 
Samuel before Eli 
David and Goliath 
David Mourning for Absalom 
Solomon's Temple 
The Embarkation of the Queen of 
Belshazzar's Feast 
Daniel in the Lions' Den . 
The Captives at Babylon . 
Esther Accusing Haman 



Moon to Stand 



Meet Her Father 



Frontispiece 

PAGE 

i7 



Sheba 



29 

36 
40 

Si 
62 

77 

93 

99 

105 

I3 1 

142 
146 
i57 



"Where lies our path? — a poet, and inquire 

What hills, what vales, what streams, become the lyre? 

See, where Parnassus lifts his head of snow. 

No, no, — a lonelier, lovelier path be mine : 

Greece and her charms I leave for Palestine. 

There, purer streams through happier valleys flow, 

And sweeter flowers on holier mountains blow." 

" I love to breathe where Gilead sheds her balm ; 

I love to walk on Jordan's banks of palm; 

I love to wet my foot in Hermon's dews; 

I love the promptings of Isaiah's muse; 

In CarmePs holy grots I'll count repose, 

And deck my mossy couch with Sharon's deathless rose." 

— John Pierpont. 





I.— THE FINDING OF MOSES 

NCE near the edge of a beau- 
tiful river in Egypt, a Hebrew 
mother made a cradle of bul- 
rushes and placed in it her 
lovely baby boy. She then hid 
the cradle in the flags growing 
by the river's brink. She did 
this to save the baby, for the 
king of that country had said that all 
the little sons must be cast into the 
river. The mother, full of sorrow, stood a 
little way off to see who would find her pretty 
boy. 
The daughter of the king, a princess, came down 
to bathe in the river. She discovered the baby and 
sent a maid to fetch it. When the princess took it 
in her arms the baby cried. This made her feel so 
sorry for the little one that she said she would keep it 
tenderly and get a nurse to take care of it. In her search 
for a nurse she found the baby's mother, who did not 
disclose the secret that the baby was hers, but said she 
was willing to act as its nurse. She took loving care 
of the baby and never let him know she was his 
mother. He grew up as the son of the princess, who 



16' STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

called his name Moses, because she drew him out of 
the water. 

One day when Moses was grown, he walked out 
to where the Hebrews w T ere working. They were 
in bondage to the king, and their lives were bitter 
with hard service in mortar, in brick, and in the 
fields. As he watched them, he saw an Egyptian 
smite an Hebrew. Moses so loved the Hebrews that 
he slew the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. 
When Pharaoh, 1 - the king, heard of it, he sought the 
life of Moses. But Moses had fled from the face of 
Pharaoh. 

By this act he surrendered his position as an 
Egyptian prince. Thus, out of love for the He- 
brews, whose cause he took up when he killed the 
Egyptian, he became an exile from Egypt, the land 
of his birth, and where he had passed his happy 
boyhood. 

He owed much to the loving care of the princess, his 
foster mother, who had educated him liberally. In after 
years he became the leader, lawgiver, poet and historian 
of the Hebrews. 

Pharaoh' = faro. 




MOSES IN THE BULRUSHES 



From the painting by Delaroche 



II.— THE BURNING BUSH 




'HE Midianites were nomads, 
though rich in flocks. When 
Moses fled from Pharaoh, a man 
of Midian, 1 Jethro by name, in- 
fi vited him to dwell in his house 
and gave him his daughter for a 
wife. Moses became a shepherd 
watched the flock of Jethro. 2 
One day he led his sheep to feed on the 
sides of Mount Horeb. 3 While there he saw a flame of 
fire dart out of a bush, yet the bush was not burned. 
Moses stepped aside to see this great sight. He could 
not understand how the bush could burn with fire, yet 
the bush was not consumed. Then the voice of God 
called out of the midst of the bush and said, " Moses ! 
Moses ! " " Here am I," said Moses. 

Then the voice continued, " Put off thy shoes from 
off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy 
ground." Moses hid his face, for he was afraid, yet the 
voice said, " I know the sorrow of my people which are 
in Egypt, and I am come down to deliver them and to 
bring them up into a good land flowing with milk and 
1 Midian = mW'i-an. 2 Jethro = jeth'ro. 3 Horeb == ho'reb. 



20 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

honey, unto the land of Canaan x ; and I will send thee 
unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people, 
the children of Israel, 2 out of Egypt/' 

But Moses feared that the people would not follow 
him, for he was an obscure man without authority. He 
asked God what he should say to the children of Israel 
to make them believe. And God said to him, " Go and 
gather the elders together and say unto them, ' The 
God of Abraham, of Isaac 3 and of Jacob hath sent me 
to you. 

Moses was not eloquent, but was slow of speech and 
of slow tongue; for this reason he asked that God 
would allow his brother Aaron, 4 the Levite, 5 to be the 
spokesman to the people. God granted him this favor. 

Then Moses and Aaron went and gathered together 
the elders of the children of Israel, and Aaron spake 
all the words which the Lord had spoken to Moses. 
And the people believed that the Lord had looked upon 
their afflictions and they bowed their heads and wor- 
shiped. 

But Moses had to be patient, because for a long time 
the king of Egypt would not allow the Israelites to 
follow him. 

1 Canaan = ka'nan. a Israel = ¥s/ra-el. 3 Isaac = I'zak. 

4 Aaron = ar'on. 5 Levite == le'vite. 



Ill -THE PILLAR OF THE CLOUD 




OSES proved by many mar- 
velous works that the Lord 
was with him. The king 
of Egypt, believing that 
God gave Moses great 
power, at length permitted 
the children of Israel to 
follow Moses out of the 
city. They went with him 
a long journey, and the angel of the Lord went before 
them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them the way ; 
and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light. 
The Egyptians followed them in six hundred chosen 
chariots and many other less costly ones, and with these 
were all the king's horsemen and all his army, and the 
king himself in the midst of them. 

When the Hebrew children saw this host they were 
sore afraid. They blamed Moses for bringing them 
away from Egypt. They said they would rather live 
in bondage to the Egyptians than die in the wilderness 
with Moses. But Moses told his people to fear not, 
but to stand still and see what the Lord would show 
them. He told them that the Egyptians whom they 
saw that day, they should see again no more, forever. 



22 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

Just then a strange thing happened: the pillar of the 
cloud went from before their faces and stood behind 
them, and stood between the camp of Egypt and the 
camp of Israel. It prevented the Egyptians from see- 
ing the Israelites. 

Then Moses lifted his rod, and extending his hand 
over the sea, divided the waters so that the children of 
Israel went over on dry land. While they were passing 
over, the waters stood like a wall on either side of them. 

The Egyptians pursued and went into the sea after 
the Israelites, but the waters covered the chariots and 
the horsemen and all the host of them, and not one 
was left. 



THE SONG OF MOSES AT THE RED SEA 

1. I will sing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphed 

gloriously; 
The horse and his rider hath he whelmed into 

the sea. 
My praise and my song is Jehovah, 
And he is become my salvation: 
He is my God, and I will praise him ; 
My father's God, and I will exalt him. 

2. Jehovah is a man of war; Jehovah is his name. 
The chariots of Pharaoh and his hosts hath he 

cast into the sea, 
And his choicest leaders into the Red Sea. 
The floods have covered them ; they went down ; 
Into the abyss they went down as a stone. 
Thy right hand, O Jehovah, hath made itself 

glorious in power ; 
Thy right hand, O Jehovah, hath dashed in pieces 

the enemy ; 
And in the strength of thy majesty, thou hast 

destroyed thine adversaries. 
Thou did'st let loose thy wrath : it consumed 

them like stubble. 



24 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

3. With the blast of thy nostrils, the waters were 

heaped together ; 
The flowing waters stood upright as a heap ; 
The floods were congealed in the hearts of the 

sea. 
The enemy said, " I will pursue, I will overtake ; 
I will divide the spoil ; my soul shall be satisfied : 
I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy 

them." 
Thou did'st blow with thy breath, the sea covered 

them : 
They sank as lead in the mighty waters. 

4. Who is like unto thee among the gods, O 

Jehovah ! 
Who is like unto thee, making thyself glorious 

in holiness, 
Fearful in praises, executing wonders ! 
Thou did'st stretch out thy right hand, the earth 

swallowed them. 
Thou hast led forth, in thy mercy, the people 

thou hast redeemed ; 
Thou hast guided them in thy strength to the 

habitation of thy holiness. 
The people shall hear and be disquieted ; 
Terror shall seize the inhabitants of Philistia. 1 
Then the nobles of Edom 2 shall be confounded: 

1 Philistia = fl-lis'tf-a. 2 Edom = e'dom. 



THE SONG OF MOSES AT THE RED SEA 25 

The mighty ones of Moab, 1 trembling, shall take 
hold upon them ; 

All the inhabitants of Canaan shall melt away : 

Terror and perplexity shall fall upon them : 

Because of the greatness of thine arm, they 
shall be still as a stone, 

Till thy people pass over, O Jehovah, 

Till the people pass over whom thou hast re- 
deemed. 

Thou shalt bring them in, and plant them in 
the mountains of thine inheritance, 

The place for thy dwelling which thou hast 
prepared, O Jehovah ! 

The sanctuary, O Lord, which thy hands have 
established. 

Jehovah shall reign forever and ever. 

Exodus xv. 

1 Moab = mo'ab. 



"SOUND THE LOUD TIMBREL" 

Sound the loud timbrel o'er Egypt's dark sea ! 
Jehovah has triumphed, — His people are free ! 

Sing, — for the pride of the tyrant is broken, 
His chariots, his horsemen, all splendid and brave, — 
How vain was their boasting ! The Lord hath 
but spoken, 
And chariots and horsemen are sunk in the wave. 
Sound the loud timbrel o'er Egypt's dark sea ! 
Jehovah has triumphed, — His people are free ! 

Praise to the Conqueror, praise to the Lord ! 

His word was our arrow, His breath was our sword ; 

Who shall return to tell Egypt the story 
Of those she sent forth in the hour of her pride? 
For the Lord hath looked out from the pillar 
of His Glory, 
And all her brave thousands are dashed in the tide. 
Sound the loud timbrel o'er Egypt's dark sea ! 
Jehovah has triumphed, — His people are free! 

Thomas Moore, 



IV.— THE RAIN OF MANNA 




( HE children of Israel had 
been in the wilderness forty- 
five days when they began 
to murmur against Moses be- 
cause there was no food in the 
wilderness. They said that they 
did not believe that the Lord was 
guiding them. They accused 
Moses of bringing them into the wilderness to starve, 
and they sighed for the flesh-pots of Egypt. Moses 
comforted them and told them that the Lord had 
promised to send them bread from heaven. 

While they were talking the glory of the Lord ap- 
peared in a cloud from which came a voice saying, "At 
even ye shall eat flesh, and in the morning ye shall be 
filled with bread ; and ye shall know that I am the Lord." 
In the evening a great flock of quail came and cov- 
ered the camp, and in the morning all round about lay 
a small round thing, as small as little flakes of frost. 
The children of Israel called it manna, for they knew 
not what it was. It was like coriander seed, white ; 
and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey. 

Every night came the quail and every morning the 
manna, excepting on the seventh day, which was the 



28 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

Sabbath. On that day the people did not gather 
manna because on the sixth day of each week they laid 
up food enough to furnish them on the Sabbath. Thus 
the Lord provided for them for forty years until they 
came to the borders of the land of Canaan. 

Just a little while after the children of Israel were 
supplied with manna and quails they became angry with 
Moses because there was no water to drink. Then 
Moses cried unto the Lord, saying, " What shall I do 
unto this people? They be almost ready to stone me." 

The Lord told him to take his rod and go forward to 
the rock in Horeb which he should smite with the rod, 
and there should come out of it abundant streams of 
water for the people to drink. This Moses did, and the 
thirst of the people was quenched. 

After this great proof of power the Israelites believed 
in Moses and became obedient to him. 

By this time they had reached the desert of Sinai, 1 in 
which was a mountain of the same name. One day the 
Lord called Moses up to Mount Sinai, and there, amid 
thunderings, and lightnings, and quakings, and a thick 
cloud of smoke, Moses received from God the Ten 
Commandments written with the finger of God upon 
two tables of stone. 

These commandments the children of Israel solemnly 
promised to obey. In after years they forgot their 
promise. 

1 Sinai = si'nal. 




From the painting by Murillo 



MOSES STRIKING THE ROCK 



THE RAIN OF MANNA 



31 



Moses continued to be the chief and lawyer of the 
children of Israel during their pilgrimage in the Wilder- 
ness. It was about forty years from the time they left 
Egypt until they reached the land of Canaan, where 
their long and dreary journey was to end. This was 
the land God had promised their forefathers, Abraham, 
Isaac and Jacob, that their posterity should finally 
possess. 

Moses went up unto the mountain of Nebo 1 and from 
there saw the beautiful land of Canaan. He rejoiced 
that the wanderings of his people were over, but he was 
not permitted to set foot on this land himself. 

After appointing Joshua 2 as his successor, Moses 
died in the land of Moab ; but no man knows of his 
sepulcher unto this day. Moses was one hundred and 
twenty years old when he died. His eye was not dim, 
nor his natural force abated. 

The children of Israel wept for Moses in the plains 
of Moab thirty days. 

There was no other prophet in Israel like unto 
Moses. 

1 Nebo = ne'bo. 2 Joshua — josh'u-a. 



THE BURIAL OF MOSES 

By Nebo's lonely mountain 

On this side Jordan's wave, 
In a vale in the land of Moab, 

There lies a lonely grave ; 
But no man dug that sepulchre, 

And no man saw it e'er, 
For the angels of God upturned the sod, 

And laid the dead man there. 



This was the grandest funeral 

That ever passed on earth ; 
But no man heard the tramping, 

Or saw the train go forth ; 
Noiselessly as the daylight 

Comes when the night is done, 
And the crimson streak* on ocean's cheek 

Grows into the great sun, — 

Noiselessly as the springtime 
Her crown of verdure weaves, 

And all the trees on all the hills 
Open their thousand leaves, — 



THE BURIAL OF MOSES 33 

So, without sound of music, 

Or voice of them that wept, 
Silently down from the mountain crown 

The great procession swept. 

Perchance the bald old eagle 

On gray Beth-peor's 1 height, 
Out of his rocky eyrie 

Looked on the wondrous sight. 
Perchance the lion, stalking, 

Still shuns the hallowed spot ; 
For beast and bird have seen and heard 

That which man knoweth not. 



And had he not high honor? 

The hillside for his pall, 
To lie in state while angels wait, 

With stars for tapers tall ; 
And the dark pines like tossing plumes, 

Over his bier to wave, 
And God's own hand in that lonely land, 

To lay him in his grave. 



O lonely tomb in Moab's land ! 
O dark Beth-peor's hill ! 

1 Beth-peor = beth-pe'or. 



34 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

Speak to these curious hearts of ours, 

And teach them to be still. 
God hath His mysteries of grace, — 

Ways that we cannot tell ; 
He hides them deep, like the secret sleep 

Of him He loved so well. 

Cecil Frances Alexander, 



SUGGESTED READINGS : 

Hebrew Hymn Sir Walter Scott. 

Lead, Kindly Light . . . John Henry Newman. 
The Death of Moses ..... George Eliot. 

" There Is a Land of Pure Delight " . . Isaac Watts. 
" My Presence Shall Go With Thee " . F. Thornton. 

Nebo ...... Ferdinand Freiligrath. 

" No Man Knoweth His Sepulchre " . . W. C. Bryant. 




From the painting by Colins 
JOSHUA COMMANDING THE SUN AND THE MOON TO STAND STILL 



V.— JOSHUA 




"HE children of Israel wept 
for Moses thirty days in 
the plains of Moab, and 
then, because Joshua, the 
son of Nun, was full of wis- 
dom, they chose him to be 
Moses's successor. They relied 
upon him to lead them across 
the river Jordan into the promised land of Canaan. 

Joshua was a strong leader. Within three days they 
were on the banks of the Jordan. Here a great mira- 
cle took place, for all the Israelites passed over Jordan 
on dry ground. The waters stood in a great wall on 
either side and left a wide path for the Israelites, who 
passed over right against Jericho. 1 After they were 
across, Joshua had to conquer Jericho and all the other 
cities on the west side of the Jordan; for the Lord had 
promised all the land of Canaan to the children of 
Israel. Each city had a king. Joshua made war a 
long time with all those kings, and finally he possessed 
all that land, the hills, and all the south country, and 
the valley, and the plain, and the mountains. There 
was but one city which made peace with the children 

1 Jericho = jer'i-ko. 



38 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

of Israel. It was Gibeon. 1 The kings that Joshua. con- 
quered were thirty and one. 

When the kings of five confederate cities heard that 
Gibeon had made peace with the Israelites,- they were ex- 
exceedingly stirred and planned to make war on that city. 

The men of Gibeon, not daring to trust to their own 
strength, sent to Joshua's camp at Gilgal 2 for him to 
come up quickly to help them against the enemy. 
Joshua lost no time. He assembled all his army, and, 
after marching all night, arrived in the early morning 
at the enemy's camp. So surprised were these five 
kings when they saw this formidable army that they 
were panic-stricken and soon routed, and as they were 
fleeing in all directions, a hail storm overtook them ; 
and it came to pass that more died from hailstones than 
were slain by the sword. 

It was at this time that Joshua performed his most 
wonderful act. Before all the people, he asked God 
most fervently to grant what he asked : Then he said 
reverently, " Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon, and 
thou moon in the valley of Ajalon." 3 And it is written 
that the sun stood still in the midst of the heaven, and 
hasted not to go down about a whole day, and the 
moon stayed, until the people had avenged themselves 
upon their enemies. And there was no day like that 
before it or after it. 

1 Gibeon = gtb'e-on. 3 Gilgal = gll'gftl. 

3 Ajalon = ftj'a-ldn. 



? 



VI— RUTH 




UTH and her mother-in-law, 
Naomi, 1 lived in the land of 
Moab. There was a famine 
in that land, and Naomi re- 
solved to go buck to her old 
home in Judah. Weeping she 
kissed Ruth and said good-by. 
But Ruth turned to her saying, " En- 
treat me not to leave thee, and to return 
from following after thee ; for whither thou 
goest, I will go ; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge ; 
thy people shall be my people and thy God my God. 
The Lord do so to me and more also if aught but death 
part thee and me." 

When Naomi became aware that Ruth loved her so 
dearly she took Ruth home with her to the land of 
Judah. 

It was at the time of the barley harvest when the 
two arrived in Bethlehem. 2 Ruth went to the fields 
and asked permission to glean after the reapers. The 
field where she gleaned belonged to Boaz, 3 a man of 
great possessions. Ruth picked up the barley that the 
reapers had left, and by night her gleanings amounted 

1 Naomi = na-6'mi. 2 Bethlehem = beth'le-hem. 3 Boaz = bo'az. 



42 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

to as much as an ephah. This was an ancient Hebrew- 
dry measure, thought to be about eight and one half 
gallons. This she took home to Naomi. 

Ruth was a dutiful daughter always. The people of 
Bethlehem said she was better to Naomi than seven 
sons. In time, Boaz took Ruth to be his wife. 

But where thou goest, I will go; 
With thine my earthly lot is cast; 

In pain and pleasure, joy and woe 
Will I attend thee to the last. 

That hour shall find me by thy side 
And where thy grave is mine shall be. 

Death can but for a time divide 
My firm and faithful heart from thee. 

Examiner* 



RUTH 

She stood breast-high amid the corn 
Clasped by the golden light of morn, 
Like the sweetheart of the sun 
Who many a glowing kiss had won. 

On her cheek an autumn flush 
Deeply ripened ; such a blush 
In the midst of brown was born, 
Like red poppies grown with corn. 

Round her eyes her tresses fell, 
Which were blackest none could tell. 
But long lashes veiled a light 
That had else been all too bright. 

Sure, I said, heav'n did not mean, 
Where I reap thou shouldst but glean. 
Lay thy sheaf down and come, 
Share my harvest and my home. 

John Godfrey Saxe. 



VII.— DEBORAH 




HE children of Israel suffered 
many temptations. Some- 
times they resisted bravely, 
and sometimes they did evil 
in the sight of the Lord. At 
one time, because of wrong- 
doing, they were sold to 
Jabin, 1 the king of Canaan. For twenty years 
he allowed Sisera, 2 the captain of his soldiers, 
to oppress the Israelites. This Sisera had nine hundred 
chariots of iron and a multitude of soldiers. 

The Israelites at this time had a judge whose name 
was Deborah. 3 She was also a prophetess. She dwelt 
under the Palm tree of Deborah, in Mount Ephraim, 4 
between Ramah 5 and Bethel. 6 

One day she called Barak 7 and told him to go with 
ten thousand men toward Mount Tabor where he 
should meet his enemy, Sisera, with his chariots and 
his multitude. She told him they should join in battle 
and that the victory should be to Barak, but that the 
glory of killing Sisera could not be his, for Sisera 
should fall by the hand of a woman. 

1 Jabin = ja'bin. 2 Sisera = sfs'e-ra. 3 Deborah = deb'o-ra. 



4 Ephraim = e'fra-im. 



6 Ramah = ra'ma. 
' Barak — barak. 



6 Bethel = Wth'61. 



DEBORAH 45 

Barak obeyed Deborah, and it came to pass even as 
she had said. While Barak pursued the chariots, 
Sisera alighted from his and fled away to the tent of 
Jael, 1 the wife of Heber, 2 the Kenite. 3 Sisera ran inside 
the tent and asked Jael for a drink of water. She gave 
him milk to drink, and when he lay down, for he was 
weary, she covered him with a mantle. 

Then Jael took a nail and a hammer in her hand and 
went softly and smote the nail into his temple and fast- 
ened it into the ground. So he died. Then Jael went 
out to meet Barak and brought him to her tent and 
showed him Sisera with the nail in his temples. 

In that way were the enemies of the Israelites sub- 
dued. Then Deborah and Barak sang unto the Lord 
this song : 

" Praise ye the Lord for the avenging of Israel ! 

Hear, ye kings ; give ear, ye princes ; 

I, even I, will sing unto the Lord ! 

Awake, awake, utter a song : 

Arise, Barak, and lead thy captivity captive. 

Zebulun 4 and Naphtali 5 were a people 

That jeoparded their lives unto the death in the high 

places of the field : 

They fought from heaven ; 

The stars in their course fought against Sisera. 

O my soul, thou hast trodden down strength ! 

1 Jael = ja el. 2 Heber = he'ber. 3 Kenite = ke'nite. 

4 Zebulun = zeb'u-lun. 5 Naphtali = naf'ta-ll. 



46 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

Blessed above all women shall Jael, the wife of Heber, 

the Kenite, be ; 
Blessed shall she be above women in the tent. 
At her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay down ; 
Where he bowed, there he fell down dead. 
So let all thine enemies perish, O Lord." 



VIII.-GIDEON 




( HE Midianites were like grass- 
hoppers for multitude, for 
both they and their camels 
were without number. They 
had ruled the Israelites for seven 
years. They had destroyed the 
sheep and the oxen of the Israel- 
ites and the increase of the earth. 
Because they so feared the Midi- 
anites, the children of Israel had hidden themselves in 
caves in the mountains. But even here they were not 
safe, and at last they cried unto the Lord to help them. 
Joash, 1 the Abi-ezrite, 2 had a son by the name of 
Gideon 3 who was a mighty man of valor. An angel of 
the Lord appeared to him and said unto him, " The 
Lord is with thee." 

Gideon said to the angel of the Lord, " If the Lord 
be with us, why, then, is all this befallen us ; why has 
the Lord forsaken Israel? " 

The angel comforted Gideon and declared that the 
Lord meant to save the Israelites through him. 

Gideon said, " Wherewith shall I save Israel ? My 
family is poor, and I am the least of my father's house." 

1 Joash = Jo'ash. 2 Abiezrite = a'bi-ez'rite. 3 Gideon = gld'e-on. 



48 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

The Lord said unto him, " I will be with thee, and 
thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man." 

Then Gideon asked several proofs. He put a fleece 
of wool on the floor and said if the next morning's dew 
was on the wool and all the earth around was dry, he 
would believe that Israel should be saved by his hand. 
The next morning he wrung out a bowl of water from 
the fleece, yet all the ground around was dry. He 
then asked that the fleece only be dry and that the 
dew be on all the earth around. And the next morn- 
ing it was even as he had begged God to have it. 

Then Gideon drew all the Israelites together to make 
war on the Midianites. Thirty-two thousand Israelites 
assembled. Men to the number of twenty-two thousand 
went home because they were afraid. God told Gideon 
to take all that remained down to the river and every 
one that lapped the water with his tongue, as a dog 
lappeth, should go with him to destroy the enemy. 
Those that bowed upon their knees to drink, Gideon 
sent back to their tents. Out of the ten thousand men 
there were three hundred that lapped. 

That same night Gideon divided his three hundred 
men into three companies. He put into every man's 
hand a trumpet, an empty pitcher, and a lamp within # 
the pitcher, and told them to do just as he did. 

Gideon and his three companies came up to the 
camp of the Midianites. Every man stood in his place, 
and they blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers, 



GIDEON 



49 



and held the lamps in their left hands and the trumpets 
in their right hands, and cried all together, " The sword 
of the Lord and of Gideon/' Then the Midianites 
were full of fear and all the host of them fled ; and 
Gideon came to Jordan, and passed over, he and the 
three hundred men that were with him, " faint, yet 
pursuing them." 

The men of Israel asked Gideon to rule over them, 
him, and his son, and his son's son, because he had 
delivered them from the hand of Midian. But Gideon 
said unto them, " I will not rule over you, neither shall 
my son rule over you : The Lord shall rule over you." 

SUGGESTED READING : 

The Picture Bible . . . Ferdinand Freilegrath. 
4 




IX.— JEPHTHAH 

EPHTHAH 1 was the son of 
Gilead. 2 He was thrust from 
home by his brothers, who dis- 
liked him, and he fled to the 
land of Tob, where he became a 
mighty man of valor. 

It came to pass, in process of time, 
that the Ammonites made war against 
Israel. The Israelites had no man strong 
enough to lead them. Then *the elders went to 
fetch Jephthah out of the land of Tob, and 
said to him, " Come, be our captain, that we may 
fight the Ammonites/' 

But Jephthah said to them, " Did ye not hate me, 
and expel me from my father's house ? and why are 
ye come unto me now when ye are in distress? '' 

They made an agreement that he should be head 
and captain over them if he should be victorious over 
the Ammonites. Then Jephthah went with the elders 
and came to Mizpeh, in Gilead. 

It was at Mizpeh that Jephthah vowed to the Lord 
in these words: " If thou wilt indeed deliver the chil 
dren of Ammon into mine hands, then it shall be 
1 Jephtha = jef 'tha. 2 Gilead == gH'e-ad. 




Gustav Dori. 
JEPHTHAH'S DAUGHTER COMING TO MEET HER FATHER 



JEPHTHAH 53 

that whatsoever cometh forth from the doors of my 
house to meet me, when I return in peace from the 
Ammonites, shall surely be the Lord's, and I will offer 
it up for a burnt-offering." 

Jephthah was very successful in the battles he waged 
against the children of Ammon. He smote them with 
great slaughter, taking twenty cities and subduing 
them to the children of Israel. 

And Jephthah came back to Mizpeh, his home, and 
behold his daughter came out to meet him with tim- 
brels and with xlances ; and she was his only child ; 
besides her he had neither son nor daughter. When 
he saw her he rent his clothes, and said, " Alas, my 
daughter, thou hast brought me very low ; for I have 
spoken unto the Lord, and I cannot go back." 

She comforted him by saying, " Do with me accord- 
ing to that which hath proceeded out of thy mouth." 
At the end of two months Jephthah did with her ac- 
cording to the vow which he had vowed. 

And it was a custom in Israel that the daughters of 
Israel went yearly to lament the daughter of Jephthah, 
the Gileadite, four days in a year. 

Jephthah judged Israel six years. Then he died and 
was buried in one of the cities of Gilead. 



JEPHTHAH'S DAUGHTER 

The mighty Jephthah led his warriors on 

Through Mizpeh's streets. His helm was proudly set 

And his stern lip curl'd slightly, as if praise 

Were for the hero's scorn. His step was firm, 

But free as India's leopard ; and his mail 

Whose shekels none in Israel might bear, 

Was like a cedar's tassel on his frame. 

His crest was Judah's kingliest ; and the look 

Of his dark lofty eye and bended brow, 

Might quell a lion. He led on, but thoughts 

Seem'd gathering round which troubled him. The 

veins 
Grew visible upon his swarthy brow. 
And his proud lip was pressed as if in pain. 
He trod less firmly, and his restless eye 
Glanced forward frequently, as if some ill 
He dared not meet were there. His home was near, 
And men were thronging, with that strange delight 
They have in human passions, to observe 
The struggle of his feelings with his pride. 
He gazed intently forward. The tall firs before his 

door 
Were motionless. The leaves 
Of the sweet aloe, and the clustering vines 



JEPHTHAH'S DAUGHTER 55 

Which half concealed his threshold, met his eye 

Unchanged and beautiful ; and one by one, 

The balsam, with its sweet distilling stems 

And the Circassian rose, and all the crowd 

Of silent and familiar things stole up 

Like the recovered passages of dreams. 

He rode on rapidly. A moment more 

And he had reached his home ; when lo ! there 

sprang 
One with a bounding footstep, and a brow 
Of light, to meet him. Oh, how beautiful ! — 
Her proud eye flashing like a sunlit gem — 
And her luxuriant hair ! — 'twas like the sweep 
Of a dark wing in visions. He stood still 
As if the sight had withered him. She threw 
Her arms about his neck — he heeded not. 
She called him " Father" — but he answered not. 
She stood and gazed upon him. Was he wroth? 
There was no anger in that bloodshot eye. 
Had sickness seized him ? She unclasp'd his helm 
And laid her white hand gently on his brow, 
And the large veins felt stiff and hard, like cords. 
The touch aroused him. He raised up his hands 
And spoke the name of God in agony. 
She knew that he was stricken, then ; and rushed 
Again into his arms ; and, with a flood 
Of tears she could not bridle, sobbed a prayer 
That he would breathe his agony in words. 



56 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

He told her — and a momentary flush 

Shot o'er her countenance ; and then the soul 

Of Jephthah's daughter waken'd ; and she stood 

Calmly and nobly up, and said 'twas well — 

And she would die. 

N. P. Willis. 

Suggested Readings : 
Dream of Fair Women . . . Alfred Tennyson. 
Jephthah's Daughter ..... Lord Byron. 



X.— SAMSON 




AMSON l was a Nazarite, 2 

which means a person 

consecrated to God. A 

Nazarite wore his hair 

unshorn as a sign that he was 

dedicated to God. As a child 

Samson manifested extraordinary 

physical powers and occasionally great 

spiritual power. As a man he judged Israel twenty 

years. 

Once he was passing the vineyards of Timnath 3 when 
a young lion roared against him. Samson caught him 
and rent him as he would have rent a kid, and he had 
nothing in his hand. After a while, as he was passing 
the same place he turned aside to see the carcass of the 
lion, and there was a swarm of bees and honey in the 
carcass of the lion. Then he made a riddle which he 
asked of thirty gay companions. He said, " Out of the 
eater came forth meat, and out of the strong came 
forth sweetness." But they could not in three days 
expound the riddle. 

Once Samson was wronged by the Philistines. 4 To 
avenge himself he caught three hundred foxes and 

1 Samson = sam'son. 2 Nazarite = naz'a-rite. 



3 Timnath = tim'nath. 



4 Philistines = pM-hVtmes. 



58 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

turned them tail to tail and put a firebrand in the 
midst between two tails, and when he had set the brands 
on fire, he turned the foxes loose into the standing corn 
of the Philistines, and burnt up the corn and the vine- 
yards and the olives. 

Once when he was leaving the city of Gaza 1 he took 
the doors of the gate of the city and the two posts, bar 
and all, and put them upon his shoulders, and carried 
them up to the top of the hill that is before Hebron. 

Once he was bound with seven green withes which 
had not been dried, but he broke them as fire breaks 
threads of tow. Once he was bound with new ropes, 
but he broke them off his arms like thread. 

Finally he confided to one who was dear to him that 
his great strength lay in his hair ; that should it be 
shaven he would become weak like other men. This 
false friend told the Philistines, who, when Samson 
slept, shaved the locks of his head. When he awoke 
out of his sleep his strength was departed from him. 
And the Philistines took him and put out his eyes and 
brought him to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of 
brass ; and he sorrowed in the prison-house. But the 
hair of his head grew out again. 

Then the Philistines, thinking Samson safe in their 
power, made merry. There were three thousand men 
and women making merry over his capture. They 
called for the blind Samson out of the prison-house to 

1 Gaza = ga'za. * 



SAMSON 



59 



make sport for them, and they set him between the 
pillars. Samson said to the boy who led him, " Suffer 
me to feel the pillars w r h"ereupon the house standeth, 
that I may lean upon them." 

Samson called upon the Lord and said, " Strengthen 
me, I pray thee, only this once, that I may at once be 
avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes/' Then, 
taking hold of the two middle pillars on which the 
house was borne up, the one with his right hand, the 
other with his left, and saying, " Let me die with the 
Philistines," he bowed himself with all his might, and 
the house fell upon the lords and all the people therein. 
So the dead which he slew at his death were more than 
they which he slew in his life. 



SAMSON 

O WHEREFORE was my birth from heaven foretold 

Twice by an angel, who at last, in sight 

Of both my parents, all in flames ascended 

From off the altar, where an offering burned, 

As in a fiery column charioting 

His God-like presence, — 

Why was my breeding ordered and prescribed 

As of a person separate to God, 

Destined for great exploits ; if I must die 

Betrayed, captived, and both my eyes put out, 

Made of mine enemies the scorn and gaze : 

To grind in brazen fetters under task 

With this heaven-gifted strength ? O glorious strength 

Put to the labor of a beast, debased 

Lower than bond-slave ! Promise was, that I 

Should Israel from Philistines' yoke deliver : 

Ask for this great deliverer now, and find him 

Eyeless in Gaza, at the mill with slaves, 

Himself in bonds under Philistine yoke. 

— From Milton s " Samson Agonistes." 




ing by Copley 



SAMUEL BEFORE ELI 



XI— SAMUEL 




NCE a mother whose name was 
Hannah took her little one- 
year-old baby boy, Samuel, to 
the temple and gave him to 
Eli, 1 the High Priest, who was 
to teach him to serve in the 
He was to open the doors of the 



temple. 
i : temple, trim the sacred lamps, and do 
whatever the High Priest wished him to 
do. On the day that he was consecrated, 
it is written that he worshiped God. 

Every year when the mother came up to offer the 
yearly sacrifice, she brought Samuel a little coat. She 
did this because she loved him. He could not go home 
to Ramah where his brothers and sisters w r ere, for she 
had given him to be a prophet of the Lord. Samuel 
grew and was in favor with the Lord and with men. 

One night when Samuel was quite a boy, he heard his 
name called, and ran to Eli, saying, " Here am I." But 
Eli told him to lie down again, for he had not called 
him. Then again Samuel heard some one call, " Sam- 
uel," and again he ran to Eli, saying, " Here am I." 

1 Eli = eli. 



64 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

But Eli told him he had not called him. But Samuel 
heard the voice again and Eli told him it must be the 
Lord speaking to him, and if he should hear it again to 
say, " Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth." 

It was only a few minutes before the young man 
heard some one say, u Samuel, Samuel! " 

Then he said, " Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth." 

The Lord talked to Samuel and told him what to do. 
Samuel always obeyed the Lord ; and every one, from 
Dan even to Beersheba, 1 knew that the Lord loved 
Samuel. 

In after years Samuel judged Israel. For fifty years 
he was their judge, twelve years alone, and thirty-eight 
years jointly with Saul. He never defrauded nor op- 
pressed any one, but prayed for Israel all the days of 
his life. He went from year to year in circuit to 
Bethel and Gilgal and Mizpeh, and then to his home, 
Ramah. 

It was at Ramah that he built an altar to Jehovah ; 
and it was in the garden of his house at Ramah that 
Samuel was buried. 

By cool Siloam's 2 shady rill 

How sweet the lily grows ! 
How sweet the breath beneath the hill, 

Of Sharon's 3 dewy rose ! 

1 Beersheba = be'er-she'ba. 2 Siloam = s*-l6'am. 

3 Sharon = shar'on. 






SAMUEL 

Lo, such the child whose early feet 
The paths of peace have trod; 

Whose secret heart with influence sweet 
Is upward drawn to God. 



65 



R. Heber 



XII.— SAUL 




( HE children of Israel seemed 
always to need a leader. Per- 
haps this was because they 
nearly always had a war on 
hand. Samuel, their judge, had 
subdued their ancient enemy, the 
Philistines, and had won back all the 
cities that the Philistines had taken, 
and had so wisely judged Israel that 
for a long time there was peace. 
Samuel had two sons, and in time he made them 
judges of Israel. These sons were not like their father, 
but they loved money, took bribes and rendered un- 
just decisions. These and other reasons led the elders 
of Israel to go to Samuel and beg him to give them a 
king such as other nations had to judge them. 

Samuel tried to reason with them that they already 
had a king, even the Lord, who is King of Kings, and 
that an earthly king would very likely double their 
troubles. But they refused to listen and demanded a 
king so that they might be like other nations, and have 
a king to judge them, and to fight their battles. 

Samuel, being a prophet as well as a judge, knew 
whom to select for their king. He took Saul, whose 



SAUL 67 

family was one of the least of the tribe of Benjamin, 
which tribe was pne of the smallest of the tribes of 
Israel. But even though he came of a somewhat ob- 
scure family Saul himself was a choice young man. 
There was not among the children of Israel a goodlier 
person ; from his shoulders and upward he was higher 
than any of the people. 

Samuel anointed Saul with oil and told him that 
the spirit of prophecy should come upon him, and that 
rfe should be turned into another man. This happened 
just as Samuel had said, for Saul's heart was changed. 

Later, Samuel called all the tribes of Israel together 
to elect their king, saying to them, " See ye him whom 
the Lord hath chosen, that there is none like him among 
all the people ; " and the people shouted, " God save 
the king/' But the children of Belial 1 said, How shall 
this man save us ? And they despised him, and brought 
him no presents. But Saul held his peace. 

Very soon after this Saul gained a great victory over 
the Ammonites. These Ammonites marched into one 
of Saul's cities, and threatened to put out the right eye 
of every man there. The people asked seven-days' grace. 
This was given them. During these days they sent 
Saul word of their distress. Saul, like the dauntless 
hero he was, summoned and lead an army three hundred 
thousand strong, and, by marching all night, arrived on 
the seventh morning and overthrew the Ammonites 

1 Belial = be'li-al. 



68 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

with terrible slaughter. This so delighted the Israelites 
that they renewed their allegiance .to Saul as king. 
Then followed victories over Moab, and Edom, and 
Zebah, 1 and the Philistines, and the Amalekites. 2 

Saul had reason to remember the Amalekites always. 
The Lord told Saul when he fought with them to de- 
stroy them and all they had, utterly. But Saul allowed 
his army to spare the best of the sheep and oxen and 
fatlings, and take them as spoil. He said he did this 
because he feared the opinion of his people. For this 
disobedience Saul paid the price of his kingdom. From 
this time began His downfall. Yet he was great even 
in his fall. Although malice, and envy, and jealousy, 
took up their abode in his heart, he frequently would 
have seasons of deep remorse. While Saul loved God 
in a far-off way, he could not see that he should yield 
God strict obedience. 

Saul felt much bitterness toward David, who, as a 
youth, had rendered great service to him and had been 
appointed to succeed him as king of Israel. David was 
innocent of all malice toward Saul ; yet Saul pursued 
him for years and tried to hunt him to death. Twice 
during this unhappy time David had Saul in his power 
and might have taken his life, but he would not harm 
the Lord's anointed. Saul recognized and admired 
the nobility of David, and once lifted up his voice and 
wept, and said to David, " Thou art more righteous 

1 Zebah = ze'bah. 2 Amalekites = am'a-lek-ites. 



SAUL 



69 



than I ; for thou hast rewarded me good, whereas I 
have rewarded thee evil." 

At another time Saul said, " I have sinned ; return, 
David ; for I will no more do thee harm, because my 
soul was precious in thine eyes this day ; behold, I have 
played the fool and have erred exceedingly. Blessed 
be thou, my son, David; thou shalt both do great 
things and also shalt still prevail." After this Saul 
sought David's life no more. 

Saul's last battle was fought with the Philistines, but 
in this battle he -did not conquer. The men of Israel 
fled from before the Philistines, and fell down slain in 
Mount Gilboa, and the battle went sore against Saul, 
and the archers hit him and wounded him. Then Saul 
said to his armor-bearer, " Draw thy sword and thrust 
me through therewith." But his armor-bearer would 
not, for he was afraid. Then Saul took a sword and 
fell upon it. His armor-bearer fell likewise upon his 
sword and died with him. 

So Saul died, and his three sons, and his armor- 
bearer, and all his men, that same day together. 

Saul reigned forty years. He had splendid virtues 
and conspicuous faults. 



SAUL 

. . . . Look forth o'er the years ! 
Thou hast done now with eyes for the actual ; begin 

with the seer's ! 
Is Saul dead ? In the depth of the vale make his tomb 

— bid arise 
A gray mountain of marble heaped four-square, till, 

built to the skies, 
Let it mark where the great First King slumbers : 

whose fame would ye know ? 
Up above see the rock's naked face, where the record 

shall go 
In great characters cut by the scribe, — Such was Saul, 

so he did ; 
With the sages directing the work, by the populace 

chid, — 
For not half, they'll affirm, is comprised there ! Which 

fault to amend, 
In the grove with his kind grows the cedar, whereon 

they shall spend 
(See, in tablets 'tis level before them) their praise, and 

record 
With the gold of the graver, Saul's story — the states- 
man's great word 
Side by side with the poet's sweet comment. The 

river's a-wave 






SAUL j Y 

With smooth paper-reeds grazing each other when 

prophet-winds rave : 
So the pen gives unborn generations their due and 

their part 
In thy being ! Then, first of the mighty, thank God 

that thou art ! 

Robert Browning. 

SUGGESTED READINGS : 

Saul ......... Byron, 

Song of Saul Before His Last Battle . . . Byron, 



XIII— "THE SWEET SINGER OF ISRAEL' 




" ; ESSE,i the Bethlehemite, 
had eight sons. Of these 
the youngest was David. 
He kept his father's 
1": sheep. He was ruddy and 
of a beautiful countenance, 
and goodly to look upon. 
This youngest son had been 
chosen of God to be king of Israel 
in place of the reigning king, Saul, when the proper 
time should come, and had been anointed with oil by 
Samuel, after which ceremony David manifested much 
grace of character. 

Just at this time Saul, the king of Israel, was much 
worried over the affair of his kingdom. His friends 
thought he would regain his peace of mind if he 
could hear music. At least it might soothe him into 
dreamless slumber. They told him that David was cun- 
ning in playing, prudent, comely in person, and that 
the Lord was with him. On this good recommenda- 
tion Saul sent for David, who, finding favor in Saul's 
sight, became for a time his armor-bearer. 

Every time Saul had a spell of despondency, David 
played for him upon the harp and sang, until the 

1 Jesse = jes'se. 



"THE SWEET SINGER OF ISRAEL" 



73 



king was lifted out of his sorrow. In time David's 
music seemed to restore the king to perfect health and 
his old-time cheerfulness. *When no longer needed, 
David returned to watch his father's sheep at Beth- 
lehem. 



44 THE HARP THE MONARCH MINSTREL 
SWEPT" 

The harp the monarch minstrel swept, 

The king of men, the loved of heaven, 
Which music hallowed while she wept 

O'er tones her heart of hearts had given. 
Redoubled be her tears, its chords are riven ! 

It softened men of iron mould, 
It gave them virtues not their own ; 

No ear so dull, no soul so cold, 
That felt not, fired not to the tone, 

Till David's lyre grew mightier than his throne. 

It told the triumphs of our king, 

It wafted glory to our God. 
It made our gladden'd valleys ring, 

The cedars bow, the mountains nod ; 
Its sound aspired to heaven, and there abode. 

Since then, though heard on earth no more, 
Devotion, and her daughter, Love, 

Still bid the bursting spirit soar 
To sounds that seem so far above, 

In dreams that day's broad light cannot remove. 

Lord Byron. 

SUGGESTED READING I 

Saul ....... Robert Browning. 



XIV —GOLIATH OF GATH 




T was a very great honor to restore 
the health of the king, but David 
was soon to have the greater glory 
of saving the king and all his house- 
hold and his people from being de- 
stroyed by a powerful foe. 

David was more than a sweet 
player upon the harp. He was a 
1 1 valiant man of war. This was proven not long 
after when the Philistines gathered a mighty 
army to make war against the Israelites. 

Saul and the men of Israel gathered their army to- 
gether and set the battle in array against the enemy. 
Each army took its position on the side of a hill, with 
the valley of Elah 1 between them. 

The advantage seemed to be on the side of the 
Philistines, for from their camp came forward a cham- 
pion named Goliath, 2 of Gath, whose height was six 
cubits and a span. 

This giant had upon his head a helmet of brass, and 
wore a brass coat of mail, whose weight was five thou- 
sand shekels. His legs were encased in brass, and be- 



1 Elah = e'lah. 



2 Goliath = go-li'ath. 



76 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

tween his shoulders was a target of brass. He carried 
a formidable spear of such weight that ten ordinary 
men could not lift it, and one bearing a shield went 
before him. 

Goliath stood and defied the Israelites. He called 
for a man to come out of Saul's army to fight him 
single-handed, saying, " If he be able to fight with me 
and to kill me, then will we be your servants ; but if I 
prevail against him, and kill him, then shall ye be our 
servants and serve us." 

This dreadful man came forward with these words 
every morning and every evening for forty days. 

Saul and all Israel were dismayed when they saw the 
man, and they were sore afraid that they could not find 
any one willing to fight with him. They offered great 
riches and high honors to any man who would kill 
Goliath. 

David had three brothers in Saul's army. One day 
his father, Jesse, sent young David to the camp to 
carry food to his brothers and to see how things were' 
going. As he was talking with his brothers the giant 
of Gath came forward again with his challenge. David 
felt sure that he could kill Goliath. He said as much 
to the men as he walked around among them. His 
eldest brother scolded him for his pride, but some one 
reported to Saul what David had said, and Saul sent 
for him. David assured Saul that he could fight this 
Philistine. For proof he said, " Thy servant kept his 




Gustav Dore 



DAVID AND GOLIATH 



GOLIATH OF GATH 79 

father's sheep and there came a lion, and a bear, and 
took a lamb out of the flock : and I went after him and 
smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth : and 
when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard 
and slew him. I slew both the lion and the bear ; and 
this Philistine shall be as one of them. The Lord 
that delivered me out of the paw of the lion and of 
the bear will deliver me out of the hand of this Philis- 
tine." 

Then Saul said to David, " Go, and the Lord be with 
thee." Saul dressed David in his own armor and helmet 
and sword, but they were so heavy that David could 
not move, and he took them off. 

David took his staff in his hand and chose five small 
stones out of the brook and put them in a shepherd's 
bag which he had. His sling was in his hand, and thus 
armed he drew near the Philistine. 

When Goliath saw David he disdained him because 
he was only ar youth, saying, " Am I a dog that thou 
comest to me with staves ? Come to me and I will 
give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air and to the 
beasts of the field." 

David answered, " Thou comest to me with a sword, 
and with a spear, and with a shield ; but I come to thee 
in the name of the God of the armies of Israel whom 
thou hast defied. This day will the Lord deliver thee 
unto my hand, and all this assembly shall know that 
the Lord saveth not with sword and spear ; for the 



80 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

battle is the Lord's and he will give you unto our 
hands." 

As the Philistine drew nigh, David put his hand in 
his bag and took thence a stone, and slung it and 
smote the Philistine in his forehead, who fell upon his 
face to the earth. 

So David prevailed over Goliath with a sling and a 
stone, but there was no sword in the hand of David. 
Then David ran and taking Goliath's sword, cut off his 
head therewith. 

When the Philistines saw that their champion was 
dead, they fled, pursued by the men of Israel and of 
Judah. 1 

When David returned from the slaughter of Goliath 
he was brought before Saul with the head of the Philis- 
tine, in his hand. And Saul took him that day and 
would let him go no more home to his father's house. 

This is one of David's songs of rejoicing: 

The Lord is my rock, and my fortress and my deliverer. 

I will call upon the Lord who is worthy to be praised ; so 
shall I be saved from mine enemies. 

In my distress I called upon the Lord and cried to my God ; 
and he did hear my voice out of his temple, and my cry did 
enter into his ears. 

He sent from above, he took me out of many waters. He 
delivered me from my strong enemy and from them that hated 
me 3 for they were too strong for me. 
1 Judah = ju'dah. 






GOLIATH OF GATH 8l 

For thou art my Lamp, Lord ; and the Lord will lighten 
my darkness. 

God is my strength and power ; and he maketh my way 
perfect. 

2 Samuel, xxii. 



XV —DAVID AND JONATHAN 




AVID now became a member 
of Saul's family. Saul had a 
son named Jonathan, 1 whose 
soul was knit with the soul of 
David as soon as he saw him. Jona- 
than loved David and they made a 
covenant together to love each other 
always. Jonathan stripped himself 
of his robe and his sword and his bow and his 
girdle and gave them to David. 
And it came to pass that Saul grew angry with David 
because when the women came out of all the cities of 
Israel, singing and dancing to meet King Saul, with 
tabrets, with joy, and with instruments of music, as they 
played they sang : " Saul hath slain his thousands, and 
David his ten thousands." This saying displeased 
Saul. It made him jealous and fearful that David 
would supplant him in the kingdom. From that time 
on he sought David's life to slay him. 

Jonathan still loved David as he loved his own soul, 

and he saved his life from the wrath of Saul many 

times. Once when Saul was very angry, Jonathan told 

David to hide behind a stone while he tried to pacify 

1 Jonathan = Jon'a-than. 






DAVID AND JONATHAN 83 

his father. He told David that if he could make peace 
between them he would come out to the field and shoot 
three arrows, and send a little lad after them. He told 
David to listen to what he told the lad. If he said, 
" Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee, take 
them," David was to know that Jonathan had made 
peace between him and Saul ; but if he said to the lad, 
" Behold, the arrows are beyond ; go thy way," then 
David was to flee for his life. 

The next morning, Jonathan, full of grief for David, 
went out to the field and shot the arrows. He said to 
the little lad, " Behold, the arrows are beyond thee ; 
go thy way." David heard, and after the little lad was 
gone, came out from his hiding place. David and 
Jonathan kissed one another and wept with one another ; 
but David wept the most. Then Jonathan said, " Go 
in peace. The Lord be between thee and me and 
between thy seed and my seed forever." David arose 
and departed. 

About a year after this David was in the wilderness 
of Ziph, 1 in a wood, when he heard that Saul was come to 
seek his life. And Jonathan went to David, saying, 
" Fear not, for the hand of Saul shall not find thee ; and 
thou shalt be king over Israel, and I shall be next unto 
thee." And they made a covenant again. 

Four years after this Saul and his sons were killed in 
battle with the Philistines. When David heard of this, 

1 Ziph = ztf . 



84 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

he mourned and wept and fasted for Saul and Jonathan. 
David was made king of Israel and was a mighty man 
of war. But he never forgot his love for Jonathan nor 
the covenant they made before the Lord. He sent and 
found Jonathan's son, Mephibosheth, 1 and showed kind- 
ness to him always. Mephibosheth was lame in both 
feet. His nurse had dropped him when he was a young 
child. David gave him great riches, and many servants. 
He had him live in Jerusalem with him, and he did eat 
at the king's table. 

David lamented over Jonathan and Saul thus: 

The beauty of Israel is slain upon thy high places : 

How are the mighty fallen ! 

Tell it not in Gath, 

Publish it not in the streets of Askelon ; 

Lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph. 

Ye mountains of Gilboa, 

Let there be no dew, 

Neither rain upon you, nor fields of offerings : 

For there the shield of the mighty is vilely cast away. 

The shield of Saul, as though he had not been anointed with 

oil. 
From the blood of the slain, from the fat of the mighty, 
The bow of Jonathan turned not back, 
The sword of Saul returned not empty. 
Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives, 
And in their death they were not divided : 

1 Mephibosheth — me-flb'o-sheth. 



DAVID AND JONATHAN 85 

They were swifter than eagles, they were stronger than lions. 

Ye daughters of Israel, weep over Saul, 

Who clothed you in scarlet with other delights ; 

Who put ornaments of gold upon your apparel. 

How are the mighty fallen in the midst of the battle ! 

Jonathan, thou wast slain in thy high places. 

1 am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan : 
Very pleasant hast thou been unto me ; 

Thy love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women. 

How are the mighty fallen, 

And the weapons of war perished ! 

2 Samuel i, 19-27. 



Suggested Reading : 
David's Lamentation Mrs. J. H. Scott. 



XVI.— RIZPAH 




'HE Amorites were a tribe of 
Canaanites. They were at one 
time a powerful tribe, but their 
power was broken by the vic- 
tory of the Israelites, led by 
Joshua. Afterwards they paid 
tribute to the Israelites, who had 
sworn unto them to protect 
them. But Saul forgot this prom- 
ise, and once, in his zeal for the children of Israel, slew 
the Gibeonites, who were the remnant of the Amorites. 
After Saul's reign, David became king. In the thirty- 
fourth year of his reign there was a great famine 
lasting for three years. David inquired of the Lord 
why the famine wasted the land. The Lord told him 
it was on account of Saul, and his bloody house, be- 
cause he slew the Gibeonites. 

David wishing to end the famine, asked the Gibeon- 
ites what he should do for them to atone for the sin of 
Saul. 

The Gibeonites answered him that they wished no 
silver or gold, but they wished seven of Saul's sons 
that they might hang them up unto the Lord in 
Gibeah. 



RIZPAH 



87 



David said he would give them seven sons of Saul. 
Then David took two sons of Rizpah, 1 the wife of Saul, 
and five sons of Michal, 2 the eldest daughter of Saul, 
— the five were Saul's grandsons, — and delivered them 
into the hands of the Gibeonites and they hanged 
them in the hill before the Lord. They fell all seven 
together, and were put to death in the days of harvest, 
in the first days, in the beginning of barley harvest. 

This was a grevious blow to the mother heart of 
Rizpah. She took sackcloth and spread it upon the 
rock over the bodies of her sons, from the beginning of 
harvest until water dropped upon them out of heaven, 
and suffered neither the birds of the air to rest on them 
by day, nor the beasts of the field by night. When it 
was told to King David what Rizpah had done, he was 
filled with compassion. He gathered the bones of 
them that were hanged, and performed funeral rites 
over them and buried them. Then the famine ceased 
in that land. 

1 Rizpah = rfz'pah. 2 Michal = mi'kal. 



RIZPAH 

HEAR what the desolate Rizpah said, 

As on Gibeah's 1 rocks she watched the dead. 

The sons of Michal before her lay, 

And her own fair children, dearer than they : 

By a death of shame they had all died, 

And were stretched on the bare rock, side by 

side. 
And Rizpah, once the loveliest of them all 
That bloomed and smiled in the court of Saul, 
All wasted with watching and famine now, 
And scorched by the sun her haggard brow, 
Sat, mournfully guarding their corpses there, 
And murmured a strange and solemn air : 
The low, heart-broken and wailing strain 
Of a mother that mourns her children slain. 

I have made the crags my home, and spread 
On their desert backs my sackcloth bed ; 
I have eaten the bitter herb of the rocks, 
And drunk the midnight dew in my locks ; 
I have wept till I could not weep, and the pain 
Of my burning eyeballs went to my brain. 

1 Gibeah = gfb'e-ah. 






RIZPAH 89 

Seven blackened corpses before me lie 

In the blaze *of the sun and the winds of the 

sky. 
I have watched them through the burning day, 
And driven the vulture and raven away ; 
And the cormorant wheeled in circles round, 
Yet feared to alight on the guarded ground ; 
And, when the shadows of twilight came, 
I have seen the hyena's eyes of flame, 
And heard at my side his stealthy tread, 
But aye at my- shout the savage fled ; 
And I threw the lighted brand, to fright 
The jackal and wolf that yelled in the night. 



Ye were foully murdered, my hapless sons, 
By the hands of wicked and cruel ones ; 
Ye fell, in your fresh and blooming prime, 
All innocent, for your father's crime. 
He sinned — but he paid the price of his guilt 
When his blood by a nameless hand was spilt ; 
When he strove with the heathen host in vain, 
And fell with the flower of his people slain ; 
And the sceptre his children's hands should sway 
From his injured lineage passed away. 

But I had hoped that the cottage roof would be 
A safe retreat for my sons and me ; 



go STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

And that while they ripened to manhood fast, 
They should wean my thoughts from the woes of 

the past. 
And my bosom swelled with a mother's pride, 
As they stood in their beauty and strength by my 

side. 
Tall, like their sire, with the princely grace 
Of his stately form and the bloom of his face. 
Oh, what an hour for a mother's heart, 
When the pitiless ruffians tore us apart ! 
When I clasped their knees and wept and prayed, 
And struggled and shrieked to Heaven for aid, 
And clung to my sons with desperate strength, 
Till the murderers loosed my hold at length, 
And bore me breathless and faint aside, 
In their iron arms, while my children died. 
They died — and the mother that gave them birth 
Is forbid to cover their bones with earth. 

The barley harvest was nodding white 
When my children died on the rocky height, 
And the reapers were singing on hill and plain 
When I came to my task of sorrow and pain. 
But now the season of rain is nigh, 
The sun is dim in the thickening sky, 
And the clouds in sullen darkness rest 
Where he hides his light at the doors of the 
west. 



RIZPAH 

I hear the howl of the wind that brings 
The long, drear storm on its heavy wings ; 
But the howling wind and the driving rain 
Will beat on my houseless head in vain : 
I shall stay, from my murdered sons to scare 
The beasts of the desert and fowls of air. 

W. C. Bryant. 



9 1 



XVII.— ABSALOM 




AVID had many sons, 
but he seemed to love 
Absalom, his third 
son, most dearly. Absa- 
lom's mother was the daugh- 
ter of the king of Geshur. 2 
Her name was Maacah." 
Once, for a very grave fault, Absalom fled from Jeru- 
salem to Geshur, and was there three years. His 
father, King David, mourned for him every day, and 
he longed to go forth unto him. Finally, the king 
sent for him to come back. Absalom returned, but 
did not see his father's face for two years. Then 
he bowed himself on his face to the ground before 
the king, and David kissed Absalom and forgave 
him. 

In all Israel there was none so much praised as 
Absalom for his beauty. From the sole of his foot 
to the crown of his head there was no blemish in 
him. 
. Absalom, by fair speeches and courtesies, stole the 
hearts of the' men of Israel. Then he conspired 4o 
take the throne from his father David, and reign in 

1 Absalom = ab'sa-lom. 2 Geshur = ge'shur. 3 Maacah = maa-kah. 




DAVID MOURNING FOR ABSALOM 



ABSALOM 95 

his stead. He fled to Hebron, 1 and many people went 
with him. 

When this treachery was told to David he fled from 
Jerusalem, and many people, valiant and true, with 
him, and they tarried in a place that was far off. 
Friends aided David. They brought beds, and basins, 
and earthen vessels, and wheat, and barley, and flour, 
and parched corn, and beans, and lentils, and parched 
pulse, and honey, and butter, and sheep, and cheese ; 
for they said, "The people is hungry, weary, and thirsty 
in the wilderness." 

In time Absalom and his followers joined battle 
against David. The battle was in the wood of Ephra- 
im. Twenty thousand men were slaughtered in one 
day. As each captain went out to the battle, King 
David said to him, " Deal gently, for my sake, with 
the young man, even with Absalom/' for he loved him 
still. 

Absalom rode upon a mule, and the mule went 
under the thick boughs of a great oak, and Absalom's 
head caught hold of the oak, and he was taken up 
between the heaven and the earth ; and the mule that 
was under him went away. A certain man saw him, 
but would not, as he said, for a thousand shekels of 
silver, put forth his hand against the king's son, for he 
had heard David say, " Beware that none touch the 
young man, Absalom." But Joab, the king's great 

1 Hebron = he'bron. 



96 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

captain, took three darts in his hand and thrust them 
through the heart of Absalom while he was yet alive. 
The soldier then took Absalom and cast him into a 
great pit in the wood and laid a very great heap of 
stones upon him. All the followers of Absalom quickly 
fled, every one to his tent. 

When the king heard how Absalom's life had gone 
out he was much moved. He went up to the chamber 
over the gate and wept ; and as he went thus he said, 
" O my son Absalom ! my son ! my son ! would God I 
had died for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son !" 

And the victory that day was turned into mourning 
when the people learned how the king was grieved for 
his son. 



ABSALOM 

" Alas, my noble boy ! that thou should'st die ! 
Thou who wert so beautifully fair ! 
That death should settle in thy glorious eye 
And leave his stillness in this clustering hair ! 
How could he mark thee for the silent tomb ! 
My proud boy, Absalom ! 

" And oh ! when I am stricken, and my heart, 
Like a bruised reed, is waiting to be broken, 
How will its love for thee, as I depart, 
Yearn for thine ear to drink its last deep token ! 
It were so sweet, amid death's gathering gloom, 
To see thee, Absalom ! 

" And now, farewell ! 'Tis hard to give thee up, 
With death so like a gentle slumber on thee ; 
And thy dark sin ! — Oh ! I could drink the cup, 
If from this woe its bitterness had won thee. 
May God have called thee, like a wanderer, home, 
My lost boy, Absalom ! " 

N. P. Willis. 



XVIII— SOLOMON 





HEN David was full of 
days he made Solomon, 
his son, king of Israel. 

« 

David had been a man 
of war, yet during the years 
that he was warring with 
other nations he had prepared 
j§jjBj||lW '--~* much material to build a temple to the 
Lord. He had an hundred thousand 
talents of gold, a thousand thousand 
talents of silver, brass and iron without weight, tim- 
ber also, and stone in abundance. These he gave to 
Solomon and told him to begin the temple. He told 
Solomon to be strong and of good courage, and do it. 
Then he gave him the pattern of the porch, and of the 
treasuries thereof, and of the upper chambers, and of the 
inner parlors, and of the place of the mercy seat. He 
gave of gold by weight for the candlesticks of gold, and 
for the lamps of gold, and for the tables of shew-bread ; 
and pure gold for the flesh-hooks, and for the golden 
basins. He gave refined gold by weight for the altar 
of incense, and for the chariot of the cherubim, that 
spread out their wings and covered the ark of the cov. 
enant of the Lord. 



CO 

o 

r 
o 
^ 
o 

z 
co 

H 
m 

2 




SOLOMON IO i 

He prepared gold for the things to be made of gold, 
and silver for the things to be made of silver, and brass 
for the things of brass, and iron for the things of iron, 
and wood for the things of wood ; also onyx-stones and 
all manner of precious stones and marble in great abun- 
dance. Of the gold of Ophir 1 he gave three thousand 
talents, and seven thousand talents of refined silver to 
overlay the walls of the temple. All this did David 
give to Solomon, who began to build the house of the 
Lord at Jerusalem in Mount Moriah 2 in the second 
day of the second month, in the fourth year of his 
reign. 

Solomon employed seventy thousand men to bear 
burdens, and eighty thousand men to hew in the 
mountains, and thirty-six hundred men to oversee 
them. He sent to Hiram, King of Tyre, 3 for cedar- 
trees, fir-trees and algum-trees out of Lebanon, 4 which 
were brought in floats by sea to Joppa, 5 and thence 
carried to Jerusalem. 

The length of the temple was sixty cubits, the height 
thirty cubits, and the breadth twenty cubits. There 
was a porch in the front of the house, the breadth of 
the house and ten cubits wide. Solomon ceiled the 
house with fir-trees which he overlaid with fine gold 
and he garnished the house with precious stones for 
beauty. There was a most holy house twenty cubits 

1 Ophir = 6'fir. 2 Moriah = mo-ri'ah. s Tyre = tyre. 

4 Lebanon = leb'a-non. 5 Joppa = jop'pa. 

LofC, 



102 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

square ; in this house were two cherubim overlaid with 
gold, whose wings spread forth twenty cubits. He 
made the vail of the temple of blue and purple and 
crimson and fine linen, embroidered with cherubim. 
There were before the temple two pillars made of brass, 
of eighteen cubits high apiece and twelve cubits in cir- 
cumference, one on the right hand, the other on 
the left. The right hand pillar Solomon named Ja- 
chin, 1 which means " it shall stand ; " the left hand 
pillar he named Boaz, which means " in strength ; " 
thus forming a kind of sentence, "It shall stand in 
strength." 

Solomon made an altar of brass and an altar of gold ; 
ten candlesticks, and the flowers, and the lamps, and 
the tongs, and the snuffers, and the basins, and the 
spoons, and the censers were of pure gold. It took 
twenty years to build the temple. Everything was 
made ready ere it came to the spot, and there was 
neither hammer nor ax nor any tool of iron heard in 
the house while it was building. 

When it was all finished, Solomon placed in the 
most holy house, even under the wings of the cheru- 
bim, the ark, wherein was the covenant of the Lord, 
that He made with the children of Israel. 

As Solomon stood before the altar in the presence of 
all the congregation of Israel, he said : 

1 Jachin = ja'kin. 



SOLOMON 



103 



" But will God in very deed dwell with men on the earth ? 

Behold heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot con- 
tain thee ; 

How much less this house which I have built ! 

Hearken, therefore, unto the supplications of thy people, — 
Israel ; 

Hear thou from thy dwelling place, even from heaven; 

And then when thou hearest, forgive." 

So the king and all the people dedicated the temple 
with burnt offerings and sacrifices. They kept a feast 
of seven days ; other ceremonies consumed many more 
days, until on the twenty-third day Solomon sent the 
people away into their tents, glad and merry in heart. 

King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth 
in riches and wisdom. He reigned over all Israel forty 
years. Then Solomon slept with his fathers and was 
buried in the city of David, his father. 

Suggested Readings : 
The Proverbs. 
Ecclesiastes. 
The Song of Solomon. 
Anticipations of Prophecy . . . William Cowper. 



XIX —THE QUEEN OF SHEBA 




HE southern part of Arabia 
was once called Sheba. 1 The 
people of Sheba were power- 
ful and wealthy, and they con- 
trolled the sea and caravan 
traffic in gold, spices, ivory, 
ebony and finely woven 
They worshiped the sun and 



ifr stuffs. 

the moon. 

3^ The sovereign of this people was a beautiful 
and wise queen. She heard of the fame of Solo- 
mon and prepared to visit him in order to prove his 
wisdom with hard questions. She came to Jerusalem 
with a very great train, with camels that bore spices, 
and very much gold and precious stones. These she 
brought as gifts to him according to custom, and to 
show him something of the splendor of her realm. 

When she saw him she communed with him of all 
that was in her heart. Very hard questions she asked 
him and a great number of them, but Solomon an- 
swered every one with great wisdom. When the 
queen of Sheba had seen all Solomon's wisdom and 
the house that he had built, and the meat of his table, 
and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of 

1 Sheba == she'ba. 



THE QUEEN OF SHEBA 107 

his ministers, and their apparel, and his cup-bearers, 
and his ascent by which he went up into the house of 
the Lord, there was no more spirit in her. Her own 
kingdom that she had thought so glorious, now seemed 
small and insignificant. 

She said to the king, " It was a true report that I 
heard in mine own land of thy acts and of thy wisdom. 
But I did not believe it, until I came, and mine eyes 
had seen it : and behold, the half was not told me : 
thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which 
I heard. Happy are thy men, happy are these thy ser- 
vants, that stand continually before thee, and that hear 
thy wisdom ! Blessed be the Lord thy God, which de- 
lighteth in thee to set thee on the throne of Israel, to 
do judgment and justice." 

The queen of Sheba gave the king an hundred and 
twenty talents of gold, and of spices very great store 
and precious stones. Never again did King Solomon 
receive such an abundance of spices as these which the 
queen of Sheba gave to him. In return, King Solo- 
mon gave to the queen of Sheba whatsoever she 
asked, besides many rare gifts of his own royal bounty. 
Then she turned and went to her own country, she and 
her servants. 



SOLOMON AND THE BEES 

When Solomon was reigning in his glory, 
Unto his throne the queen of Sheba came — 

So in the Talmud you may read the story — - 
Drawn by the magic of the monarch's fame, 

To see the splendors of his court, and bring 

Some fitting tribute to the mighty king. 

Nor this alone : much had her highness heard 

What flowers of learning graced the royal speech ; 

What gems of wisdom dropped with every word ; 
What wholesome lessons he was wont to teach 

In pleasing proverbs ; and she wished, in sooth, 

To know if rumor spoke the simple truth. 

Besides, the queen had heard (which piqued her most) 
How through the deepest riddles he could spy ; 

How all the curious arts that women boast 
Were quite transparent to his piercing eye ; 

And so the queen had come — a royal guest — 

To put the sage's cunning to the test. 

And straight she held before the monarch's view, 
In either hand a radiant wreath of flowers; 

The one, bedecked with every charming hue, 

Was newly culled from nature's choicest bowers ; 



SOLOMON AND THE BEES 



IO9 



The other, no less fair in every part, 
Was the rare product of divinest art. 

"Which is the true and which the false ?" she said. 

Great Solomon was silent. All amazed, 
Each wondering courtier shook his puzzled head ; 

While at the garlands long the monarch gazed, 
As one who sees a miracle, and fain, 
For very rapture, ne'er would speak again. 

" Which is the' true?" once more the woman asked, 
Pleased at the fond amazement of the king ; 

" So wise a head should not be hardly tasked, 
Most learned liege, with such a trivial thing !" 

But still the sage was silent ; it was plain 

A deepening doubt perplexed the royal brain. 

While thus he pondered, presently he sees, 
Hard by the casement — so the story goes — 

A little 'band of busy, bustling bees, 
Hunting for honey in a withered rose. 

The monarch smiled, and raised his royal head ; 
" Open the window ! " that was all he said. . 

The window opened at the king's command ; 

Within the rooms the eager insects flew, 
And sought the flowers in Sheba's dexter hand ! 

And so the king and all the courtiers knew 



HO STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

That wreath was nature's ; and the baffled queen 
Returned to tell the wonders she had seen. 

My story teaches (every tale should bear 
A fitting moral) that the wise may find 

In trifles light as atoms of the air 

Some useful lesson to enrich the mind — 

Some truth designed to profit or to please — 

As Israel's king learned wisdom from the bees. 

John G. Saxe. 



XX— ELIJAH 




E 1 



LIJAH 1 the Tishbite* was a 
great prophet. He lived about 
910 years before Christ. Once 
when he hid himself from his ene- 
mies, near a brook, the ravens 
brought him bread and flesh ; bread 
in the morning and flesh in the evening, 
that he might not feel the lack of food. 
But the brook dried up, and then the 
Lord told him to go to Zarephath 3 and dwell there. 
When Elijah reached the gate of the city, he saw a 
woman gathering sticks. He asked her to fetch him a 
little water to drink. As she turned to fetch it, he 
told her to bring him a morsel of bread also. She told 
him she had only a handful of meal and a little oil ; 
that she was going to make it into a little cake for her 
son and herself and then die. 

Elijah said, " Fear not ; go and do as thou hast 
said, but first make me a little cake, and after make 
for thee and thy son, for the barrel of meal shall 
not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, saith the 
Lord." 

She did as Elijah told her, and they all did eat many 
1 Elijah = e-ll'jah. 2 Tishbite = tish'bite. 3 Zarephath = zar'e-fath. 



112 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

days. The barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the 
cruse of oil fail. 

After this the son of the woman fell sick, and his 
sickness was so sore that there was no breath left in 
him. 

Then Elijah said, " Oh, Lord, my God, I pray thee, 
let this child's life come into him again." And the 
Lord heard Elijah's voice, and the child revived. Then 
Elijah took him to his mother and said, " Thy child 
liveth." 

At another time Elijah reproved an idolatrous king 
for having four hundred and fifty false prophets. 
Elijah told him to bring the Israelites together on 
Mount Carmel and he would prove to them which was 
the prophet of the Lord. He ordered two bullocks. 
The prophets of Baal 1 were to take one, cut it in 
pieces, lay it on wood, put no fire under, and call 
upon Baal. Elijah was to take the other, do the 
same, and call upon the Lord. They all agreed that 
the God that answered by fire should be the true 
God. 

The false prophets called upon Baal from morning 
even until noon, saying, " O, Baal, hear us." But no 
voice answered. Then Elijah mocked them and said, 
" Maybe your god is talking, or he is pursuing, or is 
on a journey, or peradventure he sleepeth." And 
they cried again, but no voice answered. Then Elijah 

1 Baal = ba'al. 






ELIJAH II3 

built his altar and made a trench about it. Then he 
laid the bullock on the altar, and had four barrels of 
water poured over it — once, twice, three times — and 
the water filled the trench. Then Elijah cried, " Hear 
me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that 
thou art the Lord, and that thou hast turned their 
heart back again. " 

Then the fire of the Lord fell, and consumed the 
burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the 
dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. 
And then the people fell on their faces, and they said, 
" The Lord, He is God ; the Lord, He is God." 

Elijah did not die like other men, but the Lord took 
him into heaven by a whirlwind. Elijah had a friend, 
Elisha. 1 They were together, and went to Bethel. 
Then they went on to Jericho. Then they journeyed 
to Jordan. Elijah told Elisha each time to leave him, 
but Elisha replied, " As my soul liveth, I will not leave 
thee." When they reached the Jordan, Elijah took 
his mantle and wrapped it together and smote the 
waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so 
that they two went over on dry land. When on the 
other side, Elijah asked Elisha what he could do for 
him before he was taken away from him. 

Elisha said, " Let a double portion of thy spirit be 
upon me." 

Elijah told him that he had asked a hard thing, and 

1 Elisha =• e-H'sha. 
8 



114 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 



continued, " Nevertheless, if thou see me when I am 
taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee. ,, 

And it came to pass as they still went on and 
talked, that behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, 
and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder, and 
Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. 

And the mantle of Elijah fell upon Elisha. 






XXI.-MESHA, THE KING OF MOAB 




^NCE there was a king of 
Moab named Mesha, 1 
who had to pay tribute 
to Jehoram, 2 the king of 
Israel. Mesha had to render 
to Jehoram an hundred thou- 
sand lambs, and an hundred 
thousand rams, with the 
wool. But Mesha rebelled. He did not intend to 
pay the yearly debt if he could help it. 

Jehoram went to his friend, the king of Judah, and 
asked him if he would join him in battle against the 
king of Moab. 

The king of Judah said, " I will go ; I am as thou 
art, my people as thy people, and my horses as thy 
horses." 

They decided that they would go by way of the wilder- 
ness of Edom, 3 knowing that the king of Edom would 
join them. This he did, and the three kings, with 
their great armies, journeyed toward Moab. When 
they had marched seven days they came to a place 
where there was no water for the host and for the 
cattle that followed them. The king of Israel be- 



1 Mesha = me'sha. 2 Jehoram — je-ho'ram. 



'Edom = e'dom. 



Il6 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

wailed that three such kings as they were should fall 
into the hand of Moab. For if they had no water they 
must all perish. But the king of Judah said, " Is 
there not here a prophet of the Lord of whom we can 
inquire? " 

A servant answered that Elisha, the son of Shaphat, 1 
lived near. 

The three kings sought Elisha and told him their 
trouble. 

Elisha, the prophet, said that for the king of Judah's 
sake he would help them if they would have a minstrel 
play for him. While the minstrel played Elisha pro- 
phesied thus : " Make this valley full of ditches. Ye 
shall not see wind, neither shall ye see rain, yet the 
valley shall be filled with water that ye may drink, 
both ye and your cattle, and your beasts. And this 
is but a light thing in the sight of the Lord. He will 
deliver the Moabites also into your hand." 

It came to pass in the morning as Elisha had said. 
Behold, the country was filled with water. When the 
Moabites heard that the three kings had come up to 
fight them, all that were able to wear armor stood on 
the border waiting. 

It was early in the morning, and as the sun rose the 
water looked as red as blood. The Moabites, thinking 
it was blood, and that the kings and their armies had 
fought among themselves and were slain, rushed to the 

1 Shaphat = sha'fat. 




MESHA, THE KING OF MOAB 117 

camp of the Israelites for the spoil. But they were 
met by the three kings, who rose up and smote them 
so that they fled before them. When Mesha, the king 
of Moab, saw that the battle was too sore for him, he 
and seven hundred swordsmen tried to break through 
the lines, but they could not. Every man of them was 
slain. 

Thus was Israel able to conquer Moab, because of 
the power of Elisha, the prophet. 



XXII— NAAMAN 




AAMAN 1 was a great 
and honorable captain 
of the Syrian king, but 
he was a leper. Naa- 
man's wife was waited 
upon by a little maid who 
was brought away captive from 
the land of Israel. One day she told 
her mistress that, if her master could be 
with the prophet in Samaria, he would recover him of 
his leprosy. Her remark was repeated to Naaman, and 
he spoke of it to the king, who said he would write a 
letter to the king of Israel, and allow Naaman to take 
it. Naaman departed, taking ten talents of silver, and 
six thousand pieces of gold and ten changes of rai- 
ment. The letter that he carried read like this : 

"To the King of Israel: 

" Now when this letter is come unto thee, I have 
therewith sent Naaman, my servant, to thee, that thou 
mayest recover him of his leprosy. 

" Syria." 

When the king of Israel read the letter he rent his 
clothes and said, " Am I God, to kill and to make alive, 

1 Naaman = na'a-man. 



NAAMAN II9 

that this man doth send unto me to recover a man of 
his leprosy ? Consider how he seeketh a quarrel with 
me." 

When Elisha, the prophet of Israel, heard how his 
king had rent his clothes, he sent a message, asking him 
to send Naaman to him. So Naaman came with his 
horses and chariot and stood before the door of the 
house of Elisha, who sent word out to him to go and 
wash in Jordan seven times and he would have no more 
leprosy. 

This made ' Naaman angry. He said, " Are not 
Abana 1 and Pharpar, 2 rivers of Damascus, 3 better than 
all the waters of Israel ? " And then he went away in 
a rage. 

But his servants ran to him and told him that if 
Elisha had bidden him do some great thing, he would 
have done it, and they begged him to do the small thing 
that the prophet had commanded. Then Naaman went 
down and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, and his 
flesh came again like the flesh of a little child. Then he 
was very thankful. He returned to Elisha and told him 
that he knew the God of Israel was the only God, and 
he would never worship or bow down to any other. 
He urged Elisha to take rich gifts from him, but the 
prophet would receive nothing. 

Naaman returned to his own country without taint 
of leprosy. 
1 Abana = ab'a-na. 2 Pharpar = phar'par. 8 Damascus = da-mas '-eus. 



XXIII.— SENNACHERIB 




HAZ, king of Judah, paid 
tribute to the king of As- 
syria. 1 His son, the good 
King Hezekiah, 2 feeling 
that the Lord was with 
him because he had pros- 
pered in whatsoever he 
undertook, rebelled against 
- the king of Assyria, refusing to pay 
tribute. Hezekiah was unwise in this, 
\/'*' for in the fourteenth year of his reign 
the new king of Assyria, Sennacherib, 3 came up with a 
large army and conquered Hezekiah, making him pay 
three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of 
gold. In order to raise this tribute Hezekiah had to 
strip off the gold with which the doors and pillars of 
the temple were overlaid, besides giving up all he had 
in his own treasury. 

Sennacherib had promised to depart from Hezekiah's 
kingdom if he would pay the tribute, but soon after the 
tribute was paid, the Assyrian king changed his mind 

1 Assyria = as-syr'i-a. 2 Hezekiah = heYe-kl'ah. 

8 Sennacherib = sen-naeh'e-rib. 



SENNACHERIB 121 

and determined to destroy Jerusalem and all the cities 
of Judah. To this end he sent a letter to Hezekiah 
saying that he would surely destroy the city of Jeru- 
salem and kill or take captive all Hezekiah's people. 
He named over nine countries that he had destroyed 
utterly, and finished his letter by asking where the nine 
kings of those countries were. 

Poor King Hezekiah was as frightened as he could be 
when he read that letter. He knew well how powerful 
the king of Assyria seemed to be, and that he had 
destroyed those countries and made captive their 
kings. Hezekiah knew, on the other hand, that 
everything was possible with God. He took the 
letter up to the temple and besought God to save 
His people and the Holy City from the hand of Sen- 
nacherib. 

Then the prophet Isaiah assured King Hezekiah, 
saying, " Thus saith the Lord concerning the king of 
Assyria. He shall not come unto this city, nor shoot 
an arrow there, nor come before it with shield, nor cast 
a bank against it. By the way that he came, by the 
same way shall he return, and shall not come into this 
city. For I will defend this city to save it for mine 
own sake, and for my servant David's sake." 

And it came to pass that night that one hundred 
and eighty-five thousand men in the Assyrian camp 
died, smitten by the angel of the Lord. When people 
came to the camp the next morning, all the soldiers 



122 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

were dead. Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, having 
no soldiers, departed to his home at Nineveh. 1 

A little while after this, as he was worshiping an 
idol, two of his sons stole in and took his life. Thus 
perished the great king of Assyria. 

1 Nineveh = nin'e-veh. 



THE DESTRUCTION OF SENNACHERIB 

The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold, 
And his cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold ; 
And the sheen of their spears was like stars on the 

sea, 
When the blue wave rolls nightly on deep Gallilee. 

Like the leaves of the forest when summer is green, 
That host with their banners at sunset were seen ; 
Like the leaves of the forest when autumn hath blown, 
That host on the morrow lay withered and strown. 

And the angel of death spread his wings on the blast, 
And breathed in the face of the foe as he passed ; 
And the eyes of the sleepers waxed deadly and chill, 
And their hearts but once heaved and forever grew 
still. 

And there lay the steed with his nostril all wide, 
But through it there rolled not the breath of his pride ; 
And the foam of his gasping lay white on the turf, 
And cold as the spray of the rock-beating surf. 

And there lay the rider distorted and pale, 

With the dew on his brow and the rust on his mail ; 



124 THE DESTRUCTION OF SENNACHERIB 

And the tents were all silent, the banners alone, 
The lances unlifted, the trumpets unblown. 

And the widows of Ashur are loud in their wail, 
And the idols are broken in the temple of Baal ; 
And the might of the Gentile, unsmote by the sword, 
Hath melted like snow in the glance of the Lord. 

Lord Byron. 



XXIV.— NEBUCHADNEZZAR 




EBUCHADNEZZAR,* the 

king of Babylon, once con- 
quered the city of Jerusa- 
lem. Among his prisoners 
was Daniel, 2 a wise young 
prince of Judah. God gave him 
knowledge and skill in all learn- 
ing and wisdom, and the power 
to understand all visions and 
dreams. He, and three other 
young princes, were often brought before the king, who 
found them ten times better in all matters of wisdom 
than any other persons in his realm. 

Once the king dreamed a dream which troubled him 
greatly as he lay awake at night, but the next morning 
he had forgotten it. He called the wisest men of his 
kingdom and commanded them to tell him what he had 
dreamed and what the dream meant. They told him 
it was impossible for any man to tell him what he had 
forgotten, especially as it had really never existed and 
was but the baseless fabric of a drearn. 

When Daniel heard of the king's trouble, he asked 
God to tell him the dream. God revealed it to him in 

1 Nebuchadnezzar = neb'u-kad-nez'zar. 2 Daniel = dan'yel. 



126 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

a vision of the night. Then Daniel went before the 
king and said, " The wise men cannot show the king his 
dream, but there is a God in heaven that revealeth 
secrets." Then Daniel told the king what he had 
dreamed and what it meant. 

The king was pleased with Daniel, and although a 
worshiper of idols, he felt that Daniel's God was 
greater than all the gods of wood and stone. 

Sometime after this Nebuchadnezzar made an image 
of gold. He set it up in the plain of Dura 1 and com- 
manded all his people to fall down and worship it every 
time they heard the sound of music. He said also 
that if anyone disobeyed, he should be cast into the 
midst of a burning, fiery furnace. The three young 
princes would not worship the golden image, and they 
were cast into the fiery furnace, but the fire did not 
harm them at all, not even was the smell of fire on 
their clothing. 

When Nebuchadnezzar saw how God had delivered 
his servants from the fiery furnace, he said, " How 
great are God's signs and how mighty are his wonders! 
his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom and his domin- 
ion is from generation to generation." 

But Nebuchadnezzar walked in pride of his own 
power and riches and soon forgot that the Most High 
ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whom- 
soever He will. Then there fell a Voice from Heaven 
1 Dura = du'ra. 



NEBUCHADNEZZAR Y2 y 

saying, " O, King Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken : 
The kingdom is departed from thee until thou know 
that the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men." 

Then Nebuchadnezzar was driven from men and did 
eat grass, as oxen, until he became humble. Then God 
established him in his kingdom again, and gave him 
great honor. For Nebuchadnezzar had learned through 
suffering to praise and extol and honor the King of 
Heaven, all of whose works are truth and whose ways 
are judgment. 



RECESSIONAL 

GOD of our fathers, known of old- 
Lord of our far-flung battle line — 

Beneath whose awful hand we hold 
Dominion over palm and pine — 

Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet, 

Lest we forget — lest we forget ! 

The tumult and the shouting dies — 
The Captains and the Kings depart — 

Still stands Thine ancient sacrifice, 
An humble and a contrite heart. 

Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet, 

Lest we forget — lest we forget ! 

Far-called, our navies melt away — 

On dune and headland sinks the fire — 

So, all the pomp of yesterday 
Is one with Ninevah and Tyre ! 

Judge of the Nations, spare us yet, 

Lest we forget — lest we forget ! 

If, drunk with sight of power, we loose 

Wild tongues that have not Thee in awe- 
Such boasting as the Gentiles use, 
Or lesser breeds without the Law — 



RECESSIONAL 



129 



Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet, 
Lest we forget — lest we forget ! 

For heathen heart that puts her trust 
In reeking tube and iron shard — 

All valiant dust that builds on dust, 

And guarding calls not Thee to guard — 

For frantic boast and foolish word, 

Thy Mercy on Thy People, Lord ! Amen. 

Rudyard Kipling. 



XXV— BELSHAZZAR 




|N Daniel there was no 
blemish. Although a 
captive, he was loved and 
honored as long as King 
Nebuchadnezzar lived. 
Nebuchadnezzar's son, Bel- 
shazzar, 1 who was the next 
king, forgot his father's God 
and praised the gods of gold and silver, of brass, of iron, 
of wood and of stone. 

At a great feast that Belshazzar gave to his courtiers, 
he saw the fingers of a man's hand write on the plaster 
of the wall these words : " Mene, Mene, Tekel, Uphar- 
sin." The king was greatly troubled, for none of his 
wise men could make known the meaning of the 
words. His queen asked that Daniel be called to show 
the interpretation. 

When Daniel was brought before the king he said 
that he would read the writing. Daniel told King Bel- 
shazzar that the meaning of the strange writing was, 
" God hath finished thy kingdom. Thou art weighed 
in the balance and art found wanting. Thy kingdom is 
given to the Medes 2 and Persians." 

1 Belshazzar = bel-shaz'zar. a Medes = medes. 



BELSHAZZAR 1 33 

Belshazzar had promised great honors to whosoever 
should read the writing. He commanded that Daniel 
be clothed in scarlet and that a chain of gold be put 
about his neck, and that he be made the third ruler in 
the kingdom. 

That night the words came true, for Belshazzar was 
slain, and Darius, 1 the Median, took the kingdom. 

1 Darius = da-ri'us. 



THE VISION OF BELSHAZZAR 

The king was on his throne 

The satraps throng'd the hall; 
A thousand bright lamps shone, 

O'er that high festival 
A thousand cups of gold, 

In Judah deem'd divine — 
Jehovah's vessels hold 

The godless heathen's wine. 

In that same hour and hall, 

The fingers of a hand 
Came forth against the wall, 

And wrote as if on sand : 
The fingers of a man ; 

A solitary hand 
Along the letters ran 

And traced them like a wand. 

The monarch saw, and shook, 
And bade no more rejoice; 

All bloodless waxed his look, 
And tremulous his voice. 

u Let the men of lore appear, 
The wisest of the earth, 



THE VISION OF BELSHAZZAR 135 

And expound the words of fear, 
Which mar our royal mirth." 



Chaldea's seers are good 

But here they have no skill; 
And the unknown letters stood, 

Untold and awful still. 
And Babel's men of age 

Are wise and deep in lore; 
But now they were not sage, 

They saw- — but knew no more. 

A captive in the land, 

A stranger and a youth, 
He heard the king's command, 

He saw that writing's truth. 
The lamps around were bright 

The prophecy in view ; 
He read it on that night, — 

The morrow proved it true. 

" Belshazzar's grave is made, 
His kingdom passed away, 

He in the balance weigh'd, 
Is light and worthless clay. 

The shroud, his robe of state, 
His canopy, the stone ; 



136 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

The Mede is at his gate ! 
The Persian on his throne ! " 

Lord Byron. 

Suggested Readings : 

Belshazzar . Bryan Waller Proctor (Barry Cornwall). 

To Belshazzar ...... Lord Byron. 



XXVI.— JOB 




HERE was a man in the 
land of Uz whose name 
was Job. 1 He was a per- 
fect and an upright man 
whose delight was in the 
law of the Lord. He was 
very rich in sheep, camels 
and oxen, and was greatest of all the men in the East. 
This man had seven sons and three daughters. These 
he loved much and prayed for daily. 

There were those who thought that Job loved God 
just because God had given him great riches and much 
happiness. But this was not true, as the history of 
Job proves. Job ceased to be prosperous, and one by 
one misfortunes came. First his oxen were stolen and 
their drivers were slain ; then his sheep and their shep- 
herds were struck by lightning ; then his camels were 
stolen ; then a great w r ind blew down the house in 
which his children were feasting, killing every one of 
them. But to these sorrows was added physical tor- 
ment, for Job was smitten with sore boils from the soles 
of his feet unto his crown. 

At this time, Job's three friends, Eliphaz, 2 the Tema- 

1 Job = job. a Eliphaz = el'i-faz. 



138 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

nite; 1 Bildad, 2 the Shuhite; 3 and Zopher, 4 the Naama- 
thite, 5 came to mourn with him and to comfort him. 
They sat down with him upon the ground seven days 
and seven nights, and none spake a word unto him, for 
they saw that his grief was very great. 

After that Job said, " The thing that I greatly feared 
has come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is 
come unto me. Why am I not where the wicked cease 
from troubling and where the weary are at rest ? " 

Then Eliphaz said to Job, " God shall deliver thee in 
six troubles, yea, in seven there shall no evil touch thee/' 

But Job only moaned, " Oh that it would please God 
to destroy me ; that He would let loose His hand and 
cut me off ! " 

Then Bildad, the Shuhite, said to Job, " Behold God 
will not cast away a perfect man, neither will He keep 
the evil doers. " 

Job said to him, " My soul is weary of my life." Job 
knew that God was not punishing him, but he did not 
know where his trouble came from. 

Then Zopher told him that even though he was in 
trouble now, his age should be as the noon-day, that 
he should shine forth and be as the morning. 

Job answered petulantly that no doubt all wisdom 
would die with his three friends. 

1 Temanite = te'man-ite. 2 Bildad = bYl'd&d. 

8 Shuhite = shuhite. 4 Zophar = zo'far. 

6 Naamathite = na'a-ma-thlte. 



JOB I3g 

These three men argued with Job a long time, but 
they could not comfort him. Job was too true to his 
instinct of God's goodness to believe what they said. 
Really, these friends troubled him more than the boils. 
They had long arguments. The men would ask Job 
many questions, but they did not settle anything. 

At length God asked Job many questions : " Where 
wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth ? 
Who shut the sea with doors and said, Hitherto shalt 
thou come, but no further; and here shalt thy proud 
waves be stayed ? Hast thou entered into the springs 
of the sea? Where is the way where light dwelleth, 
and as for darkness, where is the place thereof? Hast 
thou entered into the treasures of the snow, or hast 
thou seen the treasures of the hail ? By what way is 
the light parted ? Hath the rain a father? Or who hath 
begotten the drops of the dew? Canst thou bind the 
sweet influences of Pleiades 1 or loose the bands of 
Orion? 2 Who provideth the raven his food? Hast 
thou given the horse strength, hast thou clothed his 
neck with thunder? Doth the eagle mount up at thy 
command and make her nest on high ? " 

Job answered : "I know that Thou canst do every- 
thing and that no thought can be withholden from Thee, 
wherefore I abhor myself and repent in dust and ashes." 

Then the Lord accepted Job, and the Lord gave Job 
twice as much as he had before. He gave him fourteen 

1 Pleiades = ple'ya-deez. 2 Orion = o-rl'on. 



140 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

thousand sheep, six thousand camels, twelve hundred 
yoke of oxen. Also seven sons and three daughters 
were born to Job. And after this Job lived a hundred 
and forty years and saw four generations. 

Creator ! yes, Thy wisdom and Thy word 
Created me. Thou source of life and good ! 

Thou spirit of my spirit, and my Lord ! 

Thy light, thy love, in their bright plenitude, 

Filled me with an immortal soul, to spring 
O'er the abyss of death, and bade it wear 

The garments of eternal day, and wing 

Its heavenly flight beyond this little sphere, 
E'en to its source — to Thee, its Author there. 

O thoughts ineffable ! O vision blest ! 

Though worthless our conceptions all of Thee, 
Yet shall Thy shadowed image fill our breast 

And waft its homage to Thy Deity. 
God ! thus alone my lowly thoughts can soar ; 

Thus seek Thy presence. — Being, wise and good ! 
'Midst Thy vast works admire, obey, adore ; 

And when the tongue is eloquent no more, 

The soul shall speak in tears of gratitude. 

From Derzhaveri 1 s " Ode to God." 

Suggested Readings : 
These Are Thy Mighty Works, Parent of Good . John Milton. 
From Job . ..... Lord Byron. 



XXVII-DANIEL 




1ARIUS 1 was the third king 
whom Daniel served. Darius 
placed him over forty princes. 
Because Daniel was so faith- 
ful, the king intended to set 
him above the whole realm. 
A great many persons were 
displeased because King 
Darius favored Daniel, and 
they sought for some error in his management of the 
affairs of the kingdom. But they could find no fault in 
him. Then Daniel's enemies plotted to have the king 
make a law that whosoever should ask a petition of 
any god or man for thirty days, except of King 
Darius, should be cast into the den of lions. This 
they did because they knew that Daniel kneeled upon 
his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks 
to God. King Darius, forgetful of Daniel's custom, 
made the law in writing and signed it. 

This pleased Daniel's enemies, who watched and saw 
him praying to his God just as he had done before the 
king made the law. Then they went to the king. 
They reminded him that a law once made could not 

1 Darius = da-ri'us. 



144 



STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 



be changed. They told him that Daniel was disobey- 
ing the law every day, and said he must be cast into 
the den of lions. The king was sore displeased with 
himself for making the law, and labored all day to 
deliver Daniel, but there seemed no way. When they 
cast Daniel into the den, the king said to him, " Thy 
God, whom thou servest continually, He will deliver 
thee." The den was closed, and Daniel was left alone 
with the lions. King Darius went back to his palace 
and fasted all night. He would hear no music, for he 
was very sorrowful. 

Early next morning he hurried to the den of lions, 
and, thinking they had devoured Daniel, cried out in 
great sorrow. 

But Daniel's voice replied, " O, king, live forever ! 
My God hath sent His angel and hath shut the lions' 
mouths, that they have not hurt me." 

The king, exceedingly glad that no manner of hurt 
was found on Daniel, commanded that he be taken out 
of the den. 

Then the king made another law, and this is what it 
said : " I make a decree that in every dominion of my 
kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of 
Daniel. He delivereth and rescueth, and worketh 
signs and wonders in heaven and in earth, who hath 
delivered Daniel from the power of the lions." 



























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XXVIII.— THE CAPTIVES AT BABYLON 




HE great king Nebuchadnez- 
zar captured the city of Jeru- 
salem four times. After the 
third capture, he carried 
home to Babylon 1 all its treas- 
ures and many of its inhab- 
itants. The temple and all 
the palaces of Jerusalem were burned 
and the wall was broken down. The 
captives whom Nebuchadnezzar car- 
ried r to Babylon became servants to 
him and to his sons. Year after year these captives 
mourned in secret for the home they had lost. Taunt- 
ing foes required them to sing the songs of Zion, but 
their voices were choked with weeping, and in sullen 
woe they hung their harps on the willow-trees and re- 
fused to sing. 

Cyrus, 2 the founder of the Persian empire, proved to 
these people a guardian and a liberator. The prophet 
Isaiah had foretold that Cyrus should rebuild the temple 
at Jerusalem and that the children of Israel should be de- 
livered from their oppressors. It happened just as Isaiah 
had said : the children of the captivity returned to 

1 Babylon = bab'y-lon. 2 Cyrus = cy'rus. 



148 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

Jerusalem, laden with gold and silver, and began joy- 
fully to build up again and to set up anew the walls, 
when Cyrus, their friend, died. 

He was followed by a harsh king, during whose reign 
the building of Jerusalem languished. In the begin- 
ning of his reign he sent a troop of horsemen and a 
multitude of people in battle array to put an imme- 
diate stop to this work so dear to the heart of Israel. 

But in time he was gathered to his fathers and 
Darius reigned. He resumed the building of the tem- 
ple and saw it finished. 



"BY THE RIVERS OF BABYLON WE SAT 
DOWN AND WEPT" 

We sat down and wept by the waters 
Of Babel, and thought of the day 

When our foe, in the hue of his slaughters, 
Made Salem's high places his prey ; 

And ye, oh her desolate daughters ! 
Were scattered all weeping away. 

While sadly we gazed on the river 

Which rolled on in freedom below, 

They demanded the song ; but, oh never 

. That triumph the stranger shall know ! 

May this right hand be withered forever, 

Ere it string our high harp for the foe ! 

On the willow that harp is suspended, — 
Oh Salem ! its sound should be free ; 

And the hour when thy glories were ended, 
But left me that token of thee : 

And ne'er shall its soft tones be blended 
With the voice of the spoiler by me ! 

Lord Byron. 

Suggested Reading : 
Hebrew Melodies Lord Byron. 






XXIX— ZOROBABEL 




PRETTY story is related of 
how Darius was led to com- 
mand that the Hebrew chil 
dren should be allowed to 
finish the re-building of Jeru- 
salem and the temple without 
interruption. 

The king had made a great feast 
and invited everybody in his king- 
dom. After all the guests had 
gone home, Darius the king, went 
to his bedchamber and slept. The three young men of 
the guard who protected the king while he slept, fell 
into conversation. One said, " Let each of us write a 
sentence. To the writer of the sentence that shall sur- 
pass the others in wisdom, shall King Darius give great 
gifts. He shall be clothed in purple, shall drink in gold, 
shall sleep upon gold, shall have a chariot with bridles 
of gold and a head tire of fine linen, and a chain about 
his neck ; he shall sit next to Darius and be called the 
king's cousin.'' 

Then each wrote his sentence, sealed it, and laid it 
under the king's pillow. The first wrote, " Wine is the 
strongest." The second wrote, " The king is the strong- 



ZOROBABEL 151 

est." The third wrote, " Women are strongest ; but 
above all things, Truth beareth away the victory." 

Now when the king rose, he read the writings. 
Then he sent for all the learned men of his kingdom, 
and being seated in the royal seat of judgment had the 
writings read before them. Then he ordered the 
young men to be called that they might argue each 
his own sentence. 

The first young man said : "O ye men, how exceed- 
ing strong is wine ! It causeth all men to err that 
drink it. It maketh the mind of the king and of the 
fatherless child to be all one. The mind of the bond- 
man and of the free man, of the poor man, and of the 
rich man, are all one. A man remembereth nothing, 
neither debts, nor king. They forget their love to 
their brethren and friends, and a little after they draw 
out their swords. O ye men, is not wine the strongest, 
that enforceth to do thus ? " 

Then the second young man said : u Oye men, do 
not men excel in strength who bear rule over land and 
sea? Yet the king is more mighty, for he has dominion 
over them, and what he commands, they do. If he 
bid them make war, they do it. If he send them out 
against enemies, they go, and break down mountains, 
walls and towers. They stay, and are slain. If they 
have victory they bring the spoil to the king. The 
husbandman must pay tribute to the king. If the king 
command to kill, they kill ; if he command to spare, 



152 



STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 



they spare ; if he command to smite, they smite ; if he 
command to make desolate, they make desolate ; if he 
command to build, they build ; if he command to cut 
down, they cut down ; if he command to plant, they 
plant. So all his people and his armies obey him ; 
furthermore he lieth down, he eateth and drinketh, and 
these watch round about him, neither may anyone 
depart, neither disobey him in anything. O ye men, 
how should not the king be mightiest when in such 
sort he is obeyed ? " 

Then the third young man, Zorobabel, 1 said : (< ye 
men, it is not the king, nor wine that excelleth. 
Women have borne the king and all the people in his 
kingdom. Women have nourished all them that plant 
vineyards. They make garments for men ; they bring 
glory to men. A man leaveth his own father and 
cleaveth unto his wife. Do not men labor and toil and 
bring all that he hath to the woman ? Many also have 
perished for women. Is not the king great in power ? 
Do not all fear to touch him ? Yet did I not see the 
queen take the crown from the king's head and set it 
upon her own head ? She struck the king with her 
left hand and laughed, and the king gazed on her and 
laughed also. O ye men, are not women strong, seeing 
they do this ? O ye men, great is the earth, high is the 
heaven, swift is the sun in his course ! Is He not great 
that made these things ? Therefore great is the truth 

1 Zorobabel = zo-r6b'a-b£l. 



ZOROBABEL 



153 



and stronger than all things. As for the truth, it en- 
dureth, and it is always strong ; it liveth and conquer- 
eth forever more. With truth there is no accepting of 
rewards, but she doeth the thing that is just. Truth is 
the strength, kingdom, power and majesty of all ages. 
Blessed be the God of truth ! " 

Then all the people shouted and said : " Great is 
truth." The king said to Zorobabel : " Ask what thou 
wilt, because thou art found wisest ; thou shalt sit next 
me and be called my cousin. " 

Then said Zorobabel unto the king : " Remember 
the vow of Cyrus to build Jerusalem and to build the 
temple which the Edomites burned when Judea was 
made desolate. O lord the king, this is the princely 
liberality I require. I desire that thou make good the 
vow that Cyrus vowed to the King of Heaven." 

Then the king stood up and kissed Zorobabel and did 
even as he wished. He wrote letters to all having 
charge of his provinces to convey safely the children of 
the captivity to Jerusalem. He gave them their freedom 
and said that Israel should not pay tribute. He com- 
manded that there should be given yearly twenty and 
ten talents until the temple was built. He sent back 
all the vessels of gold and of silver and of brass that 
Nebuchadnezzar had taken from Jerusalem to Babylon. 

So Zorobabel took the letters, and went out and came 
to Babylon and told all his captive nation, and they 
praised the God of their fathers, because He had given 



154 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

them freedom and liberty to go up and build Jerusalem 
and the temple which is called by His name. Then the 
Hebrew children feasted with instruments of music and 
gladness seven days. 

Suggested Readings : 

The Triumph of Woman .... Robert Southey. 
Hymn of the Daughters of Jerusalem . . Milman, 
Rebecca's Hymn. From Sir W. Scott's " Ivanhoe." 



XXX— ESTHER 











NCE there was a great king 
who reigned over one 
hundred and twenty-seven 
provinces. His name was 
Ahasuerus. 1 In the seventh year 
of his reign he set the royal crown 
upon the head of Esther 2 and 
made her queen. She had been 
raised by Mordecai 3 the Jew, her 
uncle, for her father and her mother were dead. Esther 
loved Mordecai very much. Once Mordecai heard two 
men plotting to kill the king ; he told Esther who told 
the king, and thus saved his life. 

The king had a prince by the name of Haman, to 
whom all the people bowed. But Mordecai the Jew 
did not bow to him. This made Haman angry, and he 
determined to destroy all the Jews throughout the 
whole kingdom. 

He asked the king to make a decree and sign it that 
all the Jews, both young and old, little children and 
women, should perish in one day, even the thirteenth 
day of the twelfth month. And the king signed it. 

1 Ahasuerus = a-has'u-e'rus. 2 Esther = es'ter. 

• 3 Mordecai = mor'de-cai. 



156 



STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 



When the Jews heard of it there was great mourning, 
fasting, weeping and wailing, and many lay in sackcloth 
and ashes. Mordecai dressed in sackcloth and came 
even unto the king's gate. 

When Esther, the queen, heard this, she sent mes- 
sages to her uncle Mordecai, one of which was : " Go, 
gather together all the Jews and fast ye for me, and 
neither eat nor drink three days ; I also and my maidens 
will fast likewise ; and then I will go unto the king, and 
if I perish, I perish. " Esther knew that anyone who 
went before the king unless called was liable to be put 
to death. 

After the third day, she put on her royal apparel and 
went to the king who said to her : " What wilt thou, 
Queen Esther? It shall be given thee to the half of 
the kingdom." Esther asked the king to come to a 
banquet and bring Haman with him. While they were 
at supper, the king asked her again : " What is thy peti- 
tion ? " But she only invited them to another banquet. 

Now Haman had a gallows fifty cubits high built for 
Mordecai, because the king had honored Mordecai more 
than he had Haman. 

When the king and Haman had come to Esther's 
second banquet, the king asked her a third time : " What 
is thy petition, Queen Esther?" 

And Esther said : " If I have found favor in thy sight, 
O king, and if it please the king, let my life be given 
me at my petition and my people at my request ; for 




ESTHER ACCUSING HAMAN 



Gustav Dore 



ESTHER jjg 

we are sold, I and my people to be destroyed, to be 
slain, and to perish. " 

Then the king was very angry and said : " Who is he 
and where is he that durst do so ? " 

" Esther said : " The adversary and enemy is this 
wicked Haman." Then Haman was afraid. 

The king, arising from the banquet, in his wrath went 
into the palace-garden. When he returned one of the 
chamberlains of the king said : " Behold the gallows 
fifty cubits high that Haman had made for Mordecai." 

Then the king said : " Hang Haman thereon. " Then - 
was the king's wrath pacified. 

After that the good king Ahasuerus saved all the 
Jews. He gave Mordecai royal apparel of blue and 
white, and a crown of gold. In the reign of Ahasuerus 
the Jews had light and gladness and joy and honor. 



ESTHER 



Ahasuerus. Believe me, dearest Esther, 

This sceptre, and the homage fear inspires 

Have little charm for me ; the pomp of power 

Is oft a burden to its sad possessor. 

In thee, thee only, do I find a grace 

That never palls nor loses its attraction. 

How sweet the charm of loveliness and virtue ! 

In Esther breathes the very soul of peace 

And innocence. Dark shadows flee before her, 

She pours bright sunshine into days of gloom. 

With thee beside me seated on this throne 

I fear no more the wrath of adverse stars ; 

My diadem, fair Esther, seems to borrow 

A lustre from thy brow that gods themselves 

Might envy. Answer boldly then, nor hide 

What urgent purpose leads thy footsteps hither. 

What anxious cares perplex thy troubled breast ? 

Thine eyes are raised to heaven as I speak. 

Tell me thy wish ; it shall be gratified, 

If its success depends on human hand. 

Esther. O kindness reassuring to the heart 

It honors ! No light matter prompts my prayer. 



ESTHER . 161 

Lo, misery or happiness awaits me ; 

Which it shall be hangs trembling on thy will. 

One word from thee, ending my sore suspense, 

Can render Esther happiest of queens. 

If Esther has found favor in thy sight, 

If ere thou wast disposed to grant her wishes, 

Vouchsafe thy presence at her board to-day, 

Let Esther entertain her sovereign lord, 

And Haman be admitted to the banquet. 

Then, in his hearing, I will dare to utter 

What in his.absence I must still conceal. 



Ahasuerus. All shall tremble at the name 

Of Esther's God. Rebuild His temple, fill 
Your wasted cities ; let your happy seed 
With sacred triumph celebrate this day, 
And in their memory live my name for aye ! 

ii From Racine s " Esther." 



GOD, THE DEFENSE OF HIS PEOPLE 

i. Who is this that cometh from Edom 
With dyed garments from Bozrah ? 
This, that is glorious in his apparel, 
Traveling in the greatness of his strength ? 
I, that speak in righteousness, 
Mighty to save. 

2. Wherefore art thou red in thy apparel, 

And thy garments like him that treadeth in the 
wine-fat ? 

I have trodden the wine-press alone : 

And of the people there was none with me ; 

For I will tread them in mine anger, 

And trample them in my fury ; 

And their blood shall be sprinkled upon my gar- 
ments, 

And I will stain all my raiment. 

For the day of vengeance is in my heart, 

And the year of my redeemed is come. 

I looked, and there was none to help ! 

And I wondered, that there was none to behold ! 

Therefore, mine own arm brought salvation unto me ; 

And my fury, it upheld me. 

I will tread down the people in mine anger, 



GOD, THE DEFENSE OF HIS PEOPLE 163 

And make them drunk in my fury, 
And I will bring down their strength to the 
earth. 

3. I will mention the loving kindness of the Lord, 
And the praises of the Lord, 

According to all that the Lord hath bestowed on us, 

And the great goodness toward the house of Is- 
rael, 

Which he hath bestowed on them according to 
his mercies, . 

And according to the multitude of his loving kind- 
nesses. 

For he said : Surely they are my people, 

Children that will not lie ; 

So he was their Saviour. 

In all their affliction he was afflicted, 

And the angel of his presence saved them ; 

In his love and in his pity he redeemed them ; 

And he bare them and carried them all the days 
of old. 

But they rebelled and vexed his Holy Spirit ; 

Therefore he has turned to be their enemy, 

And he fought against them. 

4. Then he remembered the days of old, Moses and 

his people, saying, 
Where is he that brought them up out of the sea 



164 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

With the shepherd and his flock? 

Where is he that put his Holy Spirit within him? 

That led them by the right hand of Moses, with 

his glorious arm, 
Dividing the water before them, 
To make himself an everlasting name? 
That led them through the deep, 
As a horse in the wilderness, that they should not 

stumble ? 

5. Look down from heaven, 

And behold from the habitation of thy holiness 

and of thy glory ; 
Where is thy zeal and thy strength, 
The sounding of thy bowels, and of thy mercies 

toward me? 
Are they restrained ? 
Doubtless thou art our Father, 
Though Abraham be ignorant of us, 
And Israel acknowledge us not ; 
Thou, O Lord ! art our Father, 
Our Redeemer; thy name is from everlasting. 

Isaiah, lxiii. 



GOD'S GOODNESS TO SUCH AS FEAR HIM 

1. Fret not thyself because of evil doers, 

Neither be thou envious against the workers of 

iniquity : 
For they shall be cut down like the grass, 
And wither as the green herb. 
Trust in the Lord and do good ; 
So shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou 

shalt be fed. 
Delight thyself also in the Lord, 
And he shall give thee the desires of thy heart. 
Commit thy way unto the Lord ; 
Trust also in him, and he shall bring it to pass. 
And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as 

the light, 
And thy judgment as the noon-day. 
Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for him. 

2. Fret not thyself because of him who prospereth 

in his way, 
Because of the man who bringeth wicked devices 

to pass. 
Cease from anger and forsake wrath ; 
Fret not thyself, in anywise, to do evil, 
For evil-doers shall be cut off : 



1 66 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

But those that wait upon the Lord, they shall 

inherit the earth. 
For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be.; 
Yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and 

it shall not be. 
But the meek shall inherit the earth, 
And shall delight themselves in the abundance of 

peace. 

3. The wicked plotteth against the just, 
And gnasheth upon him with his teeth. 
The Lord shall laugh at him, 

For he seeth that his day is coming. 

The wicked have drawn out the sword, 

And have bent their bow, 

To cast down the poor and needy, 

And to slay such as are of upright conversation. 

Their sword shall enter into their own heart, 

And their bows shall be broken. 

4. A little, that a righteous man hath, 

Is better than the riches of many wicked ; 
For the arms of the wicked shall be broken, 
But the Lord upholdeth the righteous. 
The Lord knoweth the days of the upright, 
And their inheritance shall be forever ; 
They shall not be ashamed in the evil time ; 
And in the days of famine they shall be satisfied, 



GOD'S GOODNESS TO SUCH AS FEAR HIM 167 

But the wicked shall perish, 

And the enemies of the Lord shall be as the fat 
of lambs. 

They shall consume ; into smoke shall they con- 
sume away. 

The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again ; 

But the righteous showeth mercy and giveth. 

For such as are blessed of him shall inherit the earth ; 

And they that are cursed of him shall be cut off. 

The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, 

And he delighteth in his way ; 

Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down. 

For the Lord upholdeth him with his hand. 

5. I have been young, and now am old, 

Yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, 
Nor his seed begging bread. 
He is ever merciful and lendeth, 
And his seed is blessed. 

6. Depart from evil and do good ; 
And dwell forever-more. 

For the Lord loveth judgment, 

And forsaketh not his saints ; 

They are preserved forever: 

But the seed of the wicked shall be cut off. 

The righteous shall inherit the land, 

And dwell therein forever. 

The mouth of the righteous speaketh wisdom, 



1 68 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

And his tongue talketh of judgment; 

The law of his God is in his heart ; 

None of his steps shall slide. 

The wicked watcheth the righteous, 

And seeketh to slay him. 

The Lord will not leave him in his hand, 

Nor condemn him when he is judged. 

Wait on the Lord and keep his way, 

And he shall exalt thee to inherit the land ; 

When the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it. 

I have seen the wicked in great power, 

And spreading himself like a green bay-tree ; 

Yet he passed away, and lo, he was not ; 

Yea, I sought him, but he could not be found. 

7. Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright, 
For the end of that man is peace. 
But the transgressors shall be destroyed together, 
The end of the wicked shall be cut off, 
But the salvation of the righteous is of the Lord. 
He is their strength in the time of trouble ; 
And the Lord shall help them, and deliver them ; 
He shall deliver them from the wicked, and save 

them, 
Because they trust in him. 

Psalm xxxvii. 



GOD'S PROTECTING CARE 

He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High 
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 

I will say of the Lord, 
He is my refuge and my fortress ; my God : 

In him will I trust. 
Surely he shall deliver thee 
From the snare of the fowler, 

And from the noisome pestilence. 
He shall cover thee with his feathers, 
And under his wings shalt thou trust ; 
His truth shall be thy shield and buckler. 
Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night ; 
Nor for the arrow that flieth by day ; 
Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness ; 
Nor for the destruction that wasteth at noon-day. 
A thousand shall fall at thy side, 
And ten thousand at thy right hand ; 
But it shall not come nigh thee. 
Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold 
And see the reward of the wicked. 
Because thou hast made the Lord 

Which is my refuge, 

Even the most High, 

Thy habitation: 



I 7 o STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

There shall no evil befall thee, 
Neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling 
For he shall give his angels charge over thee, 

To keep thee in all thy ways. 
They shall bear thee up in their hands, 
Lest thou dash thy foot against the stone, 
Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder; 
The young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample 

under foot, 
Because he hath set his love upon me, 

Therefore will I deliver him ; 
I will set him on high, because he hath known my 

name. 
He shall call upon me and I will answer him ; 

I will be with him in trouble ; 

I will deliver him and honor him. 
With long life will I satisfy him, 

And shew him my salvation. 

Psalm xci. 






THE GOODNESS OF GOD 

1. Bless the Lord, O my soul! 

And all that is within me, bless his holy name ! 
Bless the Lord, O my soul ! 
And forget not all his benefits ; 

Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; 

Who healeth all thy diseases ; 
Who redeemeth thy life from destruction ; 
Who crowneth thee with loving kindness and ten- 
der mercies ; 

Who satisfied thy mouth with good things ; 

So that thy youth is renewed like the 
eagle's. 

2. The Lord executeth righteousness and judgment 

For all that are oppressed. 
He made known his ways unto . Moses, 
His acts unto the children of Israel. 
The Lord is merciful and gracious, 
Slow to anger and plenteous in mercy 

He will not always chide ; 
Neither will he keep his anger forever. 
He hath not dealt with us after our sins ; 
Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities, 



172 



STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 



For as the heaven is high above the earth, 

So great is his mercy toward them that fear him ; 

As far as the east is from the west, 

So far hath he removed our transgressions from us. 

Like as a father pitieth his children, 

So the Lord pitieth them that fear him ; 

For he knoweth our frame; 

He remembereth that we are dust. 
As for man, his days are as grass : 
As a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. 
For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone ; 
And the place thereof shall know it no more. 
But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to 

everlasting 
Upon them that fear him, 

And his righteousness unto children's children ; 
To such as keep his covenant, 

And to those that remember his commandments 
to do them. 

The Lord hath prepared his throne in the 
heavens ; 
And his kingdom ruleth over all. 
Bless the Lord, ye, his angels, that excel in 

strength, 
That do his commandments, hearkening unto the 
voice of his word. 



THE GOODNESS OF GOD ^3 

Bless the Lord, all ye his hosts ; 
Ye ministers of his that do his pleasure. 
Bless the Lord, all his works, in all places of 
his dominion : 
Bless the Lord, O my soul. 

Psalm cm. 



APPROACH OF A DEVASTATING ARMY 

i. Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, 

And sound an alarm in mine holy mountain : 
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble : 
For the day of the Lord cometh, for it is near ; 
A day of darkness and gloom : 
A day of clouds, and of thick darkness, 
As a dusk spread upon the mountains: 
Cometh a numerous people and strong; 
Like them, there hath not been of old time, 
And after them, there shall not be, 
Even to the years of many generations. 

2. Before them, a fire devoureth, 
And behind, a flame burneth ; 
The land is as the garden of Eden before them, 
And behind them, a desolate wilderness ; 
Yea, and nothing shall escape them. 
Their appearance shall be like the appearance of 

horses, 
And like horsemen shall they run. 
Like the sound of chariots, on the tops of the 

mountain, shall they leap ; 
Like the sound of a flame of fire, which devoureth 

stubble ; 



APPROACH OF A DEVASTATING ARMY 175 

They shall be like a strong people, set in battle 
array. 

3. Before them, shall the people be much pained : 
All faces shall gather blackness. 

They shall run like mighty men ; 

Like warriors shall they climb the wall ; 

And they shall march every one in his way ; 

Neither shall they turn aside from their paths ; 

Neither shall one thrust another ; 

They shall march each in his road ; 

And if they fall upon the sword, they shall not 
be wounded. 

They shall run to and fro in the city ; 

They shall run upon the wall, they shall climb 
up into the houses; 

They shall enter in at the window like a thief. 

Before them the earth quaketh, the heavens trem- 
ble : 

The sun and the moon are darkened ; 

And the stars withdraw their shining. 

4. And Jehovah shall utter his voice before his 

army ; 
For his camp is very great, 
And the day of the Lord is very great 
And very terrible, and who shall be able to bear 

it? 



i;6 STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 

Yet, even now, saith Jehovah, 

Turn ye unto me with all your heart, 

With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning. 

And rend your hearts, and not your garments, 

And turn unto Jehovah your God : 

For he is gracious and merciful, 

Slow to anger, and of great kindness, 

And repenteth him of evil. 

Joel, ii. 



LIST OF PROPER NAMES 



Aaron (ar'on) 

Ab'a-na 

Ab'sa-lom 

A-has'u-e'rus 

Aiah (a ya) 

Aj'a-lon 

Am'a-lek-ite 

Am'mon-Ites 

Am'or-ites 

As-syr'i-a 

Baal 

Bab'y-lon 

Ba'rak 

Be'er-she'ba 

Belial (be'li-al) 

Bel'shaz'zar 

Beth'el 

Beth'le-hem 

Bil'dad 

Bo'az 

Boz'rah 

Canaan (ka'nan) 
£y'rus 

Da-mas'eus 

Dan 

Dan'yel 

Da-rl'us 

Deb'o-ra 

Du'ra 



E'dom 
E'lah 
E'li 
E-li'jah 

El'i-phaz 
E-H'sha 
E'phra-im 
Esther (es'ter) 
Eu-phra/te§ 

Gath 

Ga'za 

Ge'shur 

Gib'e-ah 

Gib'e-on 

Gid'e-on 

Gil'e-ad 

Gil'gal 

Go-Hath 

He'ber 

He'bron 

Hez'e-ki'ah 

Isaac (I'zak) 
Isaiah (i'za-ya) 
Is'ra-el 

Ja'^hin 

Je-ho'ram 

Jephthah (jef'tha) 

Jer'i-eho 

Jes'se 

Jo ash 



178 



STORIES FROM THE HEBREW 



Job 


Pharaoh (fa-rc 


Jon a- than 


Phar'par 


Jop'pa 


Phi-lis'ti-a 


J6sh'u-a 


Phi-lis'tines 


Ju'dah 


Pleiades (ple'y 


Ju-de a 




Ke'nite 


Ra'ma 
Riz'pah 


Leb'a-non 
Le'vlte 


Sam 'son 
Sam 'u- el 


Ma/a-€hah 


Saul 


Mede 


Sen-naeh'e-rib 


Me-phib'o-sheth 


Sha'phat 


Me'sha 


Sharon 


Mi'ehal 


She'ba 


Mid'i-an 


Shu 'hire 


Miz'pah 


Si-lo'am 


Mo'ab 


. Sis'e-ra 


Mor'de-eai 


Syr'i-an 


Mo-ri'ah 


Ta'bdr 


Na'a-man 


Te man-ite 


Na'a-ma-thite 


Tim'nath 


Na-o'ml 


Tish'blte 


Naph'ta-H 


Tyre 


Naz'a-reth 




Naz'a-rite 


Uz 


Nebaioth (ne-ba'yoth) 
Ne'bo 

Neb'u-€had-nez'zar 
Nin'e-veh 


Zar'e-phath 
Ze'bah 
Zeb'u-lun 
Ziph 


6'phir 


Zo'phar 


O-ri'on 


Zo-rob'a-bel 



JUN 16 1903 



LIBRARY.OF CONGRESS 




014 241 280 9 



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rwa 



